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21
A Cellar of Fine Vintages / Re: Ask the Experts at 52 Plus Joker
« Last post by Cabbie on February 14, 2024, 02:46:44 PM »
SUBJECT  :  Mystery Piatnik deck I need help identifying.

I won this deck from a seller in England a couple of weeks ago. It is made by Ferdinand Piatnik & Sons, Vienna. I researched this deck for days before I broke down and bought it and researched for many days more, but I could find no reference online or in any of my books. It is a rather unusual deck (see photos below), especially for a Piatnik deck. From all the evidence I can gather, I am pretty sure it is an antique deck that I am dating as from the 1920s. But again, I searched everywhere and I can find no match for it, not anywhere online and not in the Fournier Museum books. I even searched all the Fournier entries, since the deck appears to be a recreation of an even earlier deck. No matches there, either. So, if anyone can identify this baby, I'd love some information on the Piatnik mystery deck.

So, here are the details I know about this deck :
1.) It is a 52-card poker type deck with French suits, and has an extra blank card. There were some early 20th century decks that came with a blank card to replace one that was lost or damaged.
2.) The card backs are a cross-hatch pattern in blue, a common backing for late 19th century to early 20th century decks.
3.) The card stock is heavy and solid and relatively rough, typical of many early 20th century decks, whereas a modern recreation deck would likely have a shiny surface on thinner card stock. This deck feels authentically old.
4.) The card color is a very pale eggshell color, typical of many 100 year old decks. A modern deck would likely be bright white for the background color.
5.) The card size is about 100 mm by 67 mm, which is bigger than the standard modern poker deck size.
6.) The Ace of Hearts has the Piatnik "mounted jockey" logo in black and white (no color), which puts it 1891 or after. 1891 is when they started using the horse and jockey logo.
7.) Strangely, the company logo says "Ferd. Piatnik e Figli S.A." and the trade mark horse and rider logo has the phrase "marca registrata". Turns out the "e Figli" (meaning "and sons") and "marca" phrases are both in Italian. And the "e Figli" is seen on several of the court cards. From the company history : In 1917 the Viennese parent company was turned into a family-owned joint stock enterprise under the name ?Erste ?sterreichische Spielkartenfabrik AG, Ferd. Piatnik & S?hne?.  So, you see the company name as F. Piatnik and Sons A.G. from 1917 to 1939 when the name was modified again. Possibly the "S.A." at the end of the Italian version of the company name was the Italian version of the A.G. If that is so, then it would place this deck from 1917 to 1939, but that is still speculation. On the World Web Playing Card Museum website, there is a selection of Piatnik logos from the 1917 to 1939 period when it was F. Piatnik and Sons A.G. , and the last one listed for 1939 is for one saying F. Piatnik e Figli S.A..
8.) The court figures are single ended (almost unknown for Piatnik decks, except for some Cartomancy decks), with figures in medieval dress. And the pips are ONLY in the upper left corner (no bottom right corner pip at all). These court cards are very reminiscent of the French costume decks from the 1840s to the 1860s. The court cards were built like these. So, even if this is an early 20th century deck, is appears to be a reproduction of a French deck from the 1850s or so.
9.) The four of diamonds card also has a very big and fancy company logo on it. Again, I could find no match for this unusual logo. But, on the World Web Playing Card Museum website they have examples of several big fancy Piatnik logos that look similar, with one of these having the A.G. on the end of it and another having the S.A. at the end. And I found an online auction for a Piatnk Skat deck with a similar large logo and the deck is dated as 1920.
10.) There is no 4-digit serial number below the logo, which you sometimes see on modern decks.

So, from all this evidence - the look and feel of the cards, the "S.A." which appears to place the deck between 1917 and 1939, the big fancy company logo on 4ofD, cross-hatch backs, etc. - I am dating the deck as circa the 1920s.

But again, I could find no exact matches for this deck anywhere. It's definitely unusual - an Austrian made deck, seemingly intended for the Itallian market and found in England. And the unusual court cards. Piatnik is still making historical recreation decks, buy they almost always have indices and pips in both corners. So, this court card formation seems to be VERY intentional.

If anyone can give me any information or proof of exactly what this deck is, I would greatly appreciate it.

22
Playing Card Plethora / Kickstarter: Apollo Playing Cards by ARK Playing Cards
« Last post by EndersGame on February 14, 2024, 05:56:21 AM »
Apollo Playing Cards by ARK Playing Cards (Kickstarter)

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/elementplayingcards/apollo-playing-cards-by-ark

Current funding level: already funded
Kickstarter ends: Tuesday, March 12, 2024

In the world of luxury custom playing cards, creator ARK Playing Cards is well-known for their quality and lavish production.  Apollo Playing Cards is their latest project, currently up for funding on Kickstarter.  As the name suggests, it's inspired by sun god, Apollo, one of the 12 main gods associated with Mount Olympus.



ARK is especially renowned for their unique tuck boxes, and once again they've brought something new to the table with this lovely deck. The tuck case has a pop-out feature that unfolds and then rotates to form a complete circle, represents the sun which symbolizes Apollo.  This animated gif does a good job of showing what this effect looks like:



Hidden behind what you see are magnets and a sliding structure that makes all this go smoothly, and stay in position when the tuck case is closed.  The vibrant yellow colours, of course, evoke the warm and bright sunshine associated with Apollo, and together with the lavish details of the artwork and design, emphasize the feeling of luxury.

The card faces depict the famous twelve gods of the ancient Greek pantheon, as well as other aspects of Greek mythology.



Apollo is also associated with music, medicine, and prophecy, and these aspects also inspired much of the artwork and design.  Besides the court card that depicts Apollo, this is also evident with the Ace of Spades, which pictures Apollo's famous victory over the Python, set against the background of the lyre frequently associated with Apollo.  The lyres also reappear on the Jokers.



Much like we've seen with previous ARK projects, the Apollo project is available with different levels and styles of luxury packaging:
Standard Deck (limited edition of 3333): single deck, including the creative pop-out plus tuck case (US$30)
Artist Boxset (limited edition of 999): holographic foil deck & monochromatic deck, in a gift box with a book (US$75)
Walnut Boxset (limited edition of 333): holographic foil deck with gilded edges, plus a collectible coin, in a walnut gift box (US$185)
Luxury Black (limited edition of 99): black-edged deck, plus an embossed metal plate (US$150, only available as part of the "All-In" reward)



Extra add-ons like uncut sheets and coins are also available separately.  Here's a preview of how each of the above four packaging and deck options look.

1. Standard Deck













2. Artist Box set















3. Walnut Box set













4. Luxury Black set





Head over to the project page for more images of these extravagant collectors pieces.

Kickstarter link

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/elementplayingcards/apollo-playing-cards-by-ark


23
A Cellar of Fine Vintages / Re: Playing Card Collection
« Last post by JohnEdelson on February 05, 2024, 01:48:11 PM »
I've gotten very interested in the early wide Congress 606 decks that have jokers that match the back of the cards.
They seem to have been published from 1898 to 1906.
If any you have any of them to sell (or trade), I'd love to hear from you.

Here's some info on where I am in collecting them:
https://www.amusedbyjokersami.com/2023/11/my-matching-congress-606-jokers.html

Here's some decks that I have to trade:
https://www.amusedbyjokersami.com/2023/11/vintage-decks-that-id-trade-away.html

24
Hochman Updates / Re: Chapter 6 - Andrew Dougherty
« Last post by Worst Bower on February 02, 2024, 06:06:06 PM »
While Dougherty bought the location at Centre Street in 1871, he didn't move in until 1874 due to the need for extensive renovations. AD7 was produced at Beekman Street. Its little joker card has an inscription dating it to 1872. AD8, AD10, and AD12b could not have been made before the move and must be re-dated from '74 onward. The Best Bower card seen in AD8 is mentioned to pre-date the little joker, so it must have been created at Beekman sometime before '72.
26
The Flourish Magazine (x Cardtopia Special Edition)

Just 3 or 4 months ago, Biz released his terrific cardistry magazine, The Flourish Launch Issue.  It instantly made a very positive impression, with a physical magazine that consisted of over 100 pages of quality content, with quality presentation in every way.

The plan was to release this on an annual basis, so it was a real surprise to hear that an interim issue had come out, albeit smaller in size (38 pages), but with content of an equally high standard, if not even better.  It was a collaboration with the folks behind Cardtopia, hence the title of this issue: The Flourish x Cardtopia (Special Ed.)

Once again it all begins with a professionally produced cover:



I've just finished reading through my copy, and it's absolutely outstanding!

The contents page looks very impressive:



Here's a short text-based overview of some of the contents you can expect to find inside:



All this content is terrific, and the entire magazine is a wonderful resource that cardists are going to love.  The article on different uses for playing cards was really interesting, as was the one about the history and value of conventions.

I also loved the longer articles: an interview with Noel Heath, Shivraj doing a deep dive on Cardestroy, Daniel Lin from Lotusinhand discussing their thinking behind playing cards and design, and a shorter overview by Linus Schmidt about the brand Komorebi.

And as a playing card buff, I also enjoyed the time-line poster about the history of playing cards. All the articles were really well done from beginning to end.



Everything about it is superb, including the physical presentation.  The graphic design and pictures is stellar, and for a physical magazine it looks visually impressive and clean.

Using QR codes to link directly to youtube videos and more is a terrific idea. 

I continue to be blown away by the quality of this magazine, and anyone with a love for cardistry should go check it out, and support the creators, so that we can see more of this in the future.



Biz and Friends have done an excellent job all round with this Cartopia collaboration, and I highly recommend this beautiful magazine for anyone interested in cardistry. 

Get it here: https://bizandfriends.com/products/the-flourish-x-cardtopia-special-ed

View some sample pages here: https://issuu.com/bizandfriends/docs/cardtopia_ed

27
 Kickstarter: La Mouche Playing Cards (Once Upon a Fly) by Elettra Deganello

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/elettrad/la-mouche

A playful deck of playing cards narrating the fly's whimsical journey

Project ends: Thurs, 15th February, 2024



Elettra Deganello is one of my favourite playing card designers from recent years.  She's a professional visual designer and illustrator from Italy, and has been contributing to the custom playing card industry since 2018 with some gorgeous and original designs, several of which have been nominated for and won awards.  To learn more about her, see this interview that I did with her about two years ago.

Her current project, just launched, is called La Mouche Playing Cards, aka Once Upon A Fly, since it is a whimsical deck that tells the story of a fly's journey.  Two editions are being produced: La Mouche Blanche (standard) and La Mouche Noire (limited).  The manufacturer of choice is Expert Playing Card Company, using their classic stock, in standard poker size.

Deganello has opted to use a classic French style for the pips, to fit well with the elegance and whimsy of the overall deck. 



For me the highlight of this deck is in the number cards, which have a semi-transformation style.  Transformation decks have a long history, and are the result of an artist creatively incorporating the pips into the artwork, as seen here.





If you look carefully you'll find our friend the fly (the mouche) appearing regularly on these and the other cards in the deck.



Since playing cards are made of paper and originally had blank backs, they have a long history of being used for other purposes, such as reminder notes or invitations.  Elettra offers a tribute to this history by incorporating examples of this on some of the number cards, e.g. the 2 of Hearts includes an invitation to a banquet, and the 4 of Diamonds a marriage announcement.   Other cards pay homage to famous paintings (e.g. 2 of Spades), or include quotes, questions, or sayings (e.g. 10 of Hearts).





The court cards continue the overall light-hearted feel of the deck, and use French indices, i.e. r = roi (king), d = dame (queen), v = valet (jack).





All four aces picture a different idiom relating to our friend the fly, the English translation being:
● Ace of Hearts: "Make an elephant out of a fly" (similar to the expression "make a storm in a teacup")
● Ace of Clubs: "He wouldn?t hurt a fly"
● Ace of Diamonds: "One can hear a fly flying" (similar to the expression "you could hear a pin drop")
● Ace of Spades: "In a closed mouth, no fly enters" (similar to the expression "Mum?s the word" about confidentiality)



The back design features a borderless daisy pattern, chosen for elegance and simplicity.  The limited La Mouche Noire uses the same daisy pattern, but sets this on a solid black.



The tuck box of the La Mouche Blanche edition has a long tongue flap and retro look that suits the style of the deck itself.



The La Mouche Noire edition (shown on the right below) is the limited edition.  Its tuck box has the extra luxury of foil (white, red, and silver) and a numbered seal, and is inspired by vintage French posters.  This deck comes with the extra bling of silver gilding on the cards.



I've followed Elettra's work for several years, and am a great admirer of the way she has a fresh approach to playing cards, and how she brings her expertise and experience to our classic deck to produce something original and unique, and in this case, playful and whimsical.  Kudos to Elettra Deganello for another wonderful project of custom playing cards!

Project link

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/elettrad/la-mouche

28
A Cellar of Fine Vintages / Trouble Posting Pics
« Last post by johns7076 on January 25, 2024, 05:51:16 PM »
Trying to load jpg pics but keep getting file too large.
29
Hochman Updates / Re: Chapter 4 - Longley Brothers and Successor Companies
« Last post by Worst Bower on January 13, 2024, 12:25:46 PM »
If the dating of L5 is correct (c1867), it is the earliest true joker! Not an imperial bower or best bower, but an actual joker. And it's a clown too!

Here are my doubts: it's part of a 52 card deck, not a 32 card euchre deck; and it has rounded corners (http://a.trionfi.eu/WWPCM/decks03/d01822/d01822.htm). The biggest red flag is that Samuel Cupples & Company was called Cupples & Marston until 1870! I would put this card in the 1870s.

Update: thanks to the research of Dave Seaney, this joker must be from 1877 or later. https://longleybrothers.weebly.com/paper-fabrique-cards---cincinnati.html

Check out Seaney's site for corrections about the Longley bros. https://longleybrothers.weebly.com/
30
Hochman Updates / Re: Chapter 5 - The New York Consolidated Card Company
« Last post by Worst Bower on January 13, 2024, 11:43:51 AM »
The date for NY16 JNO. J. LEVY seems like a mistake or at least the joker is too early. It looks closer to 1870 than 1860 since NY22 mentions a similar joker. It also contradicts NY36, which is called the earliest joker. (UPDATE: First edition of Hochman gives NY16 an 1871 date! See: https://www.plainbacks.com/PBNew/Packs%20Pages/I112.html and https://www.plainbacks.com/PBNew/Packs%20Pages/I138.html)

NY16b has corner indices (http://a.trionfi.eu/WWPCM/decks16/d14757/d14757.htm). Levy didn't have the rights to manufacture them in 1868 as his cousin and then competitor, Hart, owned the patent. It won't be until they merged in '72 did he start using them. This deck should date a few years before '76 when a similar "best bower" card as seen in NY63 became a company mainstay.

NY37 gives a circa 1868 date when the year 1869 is clearly printed on the card itself.

NY39 has a c1870 date but NYCC wasn't formed until  February 1872.
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