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1902 British Joker?

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1902 British Joker?
« on: January 12, 2017, 12:40:27 AM »
 

skinny

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So here is a deck of De la Rue cards from King Edward VII's coronation, june 1902. I love the tiny indices and the quality, colorful printing on the backs. Let's talk about that joker, though. I found a one-off reference to jokers finally being "allowed" into French-style decks in 1902 (http://www.numericana.com/answer/cards.htm).

There are absolutely no indentations where the word Joker appears on the card. I'm lead to believe that the text might have been stamped on the card. (The line weight and ink coverage don't suggest handwriting; felt tipped pens weren't popular until the 1950s; who would both have ~and write on~ a spare 2 of diamonds on a card that was already 50 years old?

Does anyone have a De la Rue joker from 1902 or earlier?
« Last Edit: January 12, 2017, 12:44:58 AM by skinny »
 

Re: 1902 British Joker?
« Reply #1 on: January 12, 2017, 12:25:36 PM »
 

Worst Bower

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The British have been making jokers since the 1870s. Your link refers to decks made in France for the French who held out against jokers for a longer period. Your picture really does look like someone took a spare card and converted it into a joker. A professional printing company won't make something that embarrassingly crude.
 

Re: 1902 British Joker?
« Reply #2 on: January 12, 2017, 11:16:36 PM »
 

skinny

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I agree that's the only rational conclusion. I wasn't expecting a joker and I was immediately upset that I had a "damaged" 2 of diamonds (much the opposite of someone writing a missing card value on a joker). I flipped through and found the cards in order, complete, with a 2 of diamonds. Whew.

I'm still interested in finding the original joker (or a <> 1902 De la Rue joker from a deck with these faces). I'm still treating this as my own mystery. When I get my carbon-dating results back, a second opinion from the handwriting analyst, and a response to my official query in the Queen's own hand, I'll let everyone know (in the off-topic section).