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Off Topic Chat => The Conversation Parlor => Topic started by: variantventures on October 29, 2014, 12:31:38 PM
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Does anyone know what happened to the collection that made up the USPCC museum?
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The museum was closed several years ago, well before the move from Cincinnati to Erlanger. I've been told that it's been essentially "raided" - many of the exhibits were picked through by employees, who took many of the exhibits home. As to the truth of this, I really don't know. It's safe to say that one way or another, the museum was dismantled, no longer exists and much of what was in the museum is, one way or another, no longer in USPC's possession.
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Last night I found a reference on the Carey-Yale website which claims the collection went to the Cincinnati Museum of Art.
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Last night I found a reference on the Carey-Yale website which claims the collection went to the Cincinnati Museum of Art.
Dug up a bit about the Cary Collection and it does indeed mention the USPC's collection and the fact that it's on permanent loan to the Cincinnati Art Museum. But the webpage indicates this near the top of the page, above where this information was found:
The following texts are taken from volume 1 of: A catalogue of the Cary Collection of Playing Cards in the Yale University Library by William B. Keller. (New Haven: Yale University Library, 1981).
In '81, I'm sure the collection was great. Today, not so much. Couldn't find anything about cards anywhere on the Cincinnati Art Museum website - they don't even have them in their online shop. If they still possess a portion of the collection after 33 years, they're being mum about it.
I think the USPC Museum was shut down somewhere in the last decade or so but before the move to Kentucky - meaning somewhere between 2004 and 2009.
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Good one. This (http://www2.cincinnati.com/visitorsguide/stories/080700_cincycards.html) author indicates the collection was returned to USPCC in 1983.
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Good one. This (http://www2.cincinnati.com/visitorsguide/stories/080700_cincycards.html) author indicates the collection was returned to USPCC in 1983.
So the new iteration of the museum collection only lasted about 20-odd years.
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Heard back from USPCC today and they say they still have the collection in storage.
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Heard back from USPCC today and they say they still have the collection in storage.
Remember the article you mentioned about the collection only being displayed a little at a time? Again, this is just what I heard, not what I've seen, but it's possible in a collection of that size that many items may have gone missing over the years, particularly around the time the museum closed.
Believe me, I wish the museum still existed. I'd love to get a chance to see even some of the collection up close. The very limited hours of operation (Tuesday and Thursday from noon to 4pm) could not have helped much in terms of raising the museum's profile and popularity.
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It would be nice to see a groundswell to have the collection put online. Perhaps a kickstarter with a limited edition deck as a reward? Yes, I'm being puckish. In the meantime you can see some of the collection here:
http://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015008195458;view=1up;seq=11
I understand the actual cards in the collection are over-shadowed by the books in the library that goes with the collection.
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It would be nice to see a groundswell to have the collection put online. Perhaps a kickstarter with a limited edition deck as a reward? Yes, I'm being puckish. In the meantime you can see some of the collection here:
http://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015008195458;view=1up;seq=11
I understand the actual cards in the collection are over-shadowed by the books in the library that goes with the collection.
It's an interesting idea, but Jarden is not entirely likely to do it. It's questionable whether they'd want to participate in a Kickstarter to raise funds for the work, and it's work that's going to cost money (employees must get paid) while at the same time generating no revenue. Come up with a full business plan that makes money (or something similarly valuable) for Jarden and perhaps they'll consider it.
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A bit of history. The Collection was significantly augmented in the 1890's thru the purchase of a large collection from England - mostly British and European cards. In the mid-1920's it loaned to the Cincinnati Art Museum who maintained it until the 1980's when it was returned to the Company. Since that time it has been valued [and in the process, reorganized] twice. Subsequently, as the days of the move to Erlanger came closer it was packed up and stored.
The cards are much more valuable than the excellent book collection. The best description of the collection is in a book done around the time of the transfer to the Cincinnati Art Museum by Catherine Hargrave - available in a few reprints, for example http://www.amazon.com/History-Playing-Cards-Bibliography-Gaming/dp/1258461927 (http://www.amazon.com/History-Playing-Cards-Bibliography-Gaming/dp/1258461927) . The original hardcover is quite beautiful and sells for $200-400.