Playing card pack
Record status
Individual type · partial
Period
12 April 1890
This object is a French deck of tarot playing cards, consisting of a pack of 78 cards known as 'German tarot'. The cards feature French suits and are double-ended. The trumps display chinoiserie figures and scenes alongside depictions of sea monsters. The court cards are lettered with the maker's name and address, while the Ace of Clubs bears a French tax stamp inscribed 'Republique Francaise Decret Du Avril 1890'. The card reverses feature an undulating black and white pattern of checks.
The cards are produced from card stock and printed with printing ink as colour lithographs. Each individual card measures approximately 4.0625 inches (10.3 cm) in height and 2.1875 inches (5.5 cm) in width. The pack was manufactured in France, first published on 12 April 1890 or circa 1895, and published by Lequart in Paris.
Evidence at a glance
- Linked sources
- 1
- Photograph views
- 1
- Catalogue references
- 0
Counts describe this entry’s documentation, not authenticity, rarity or completeness. Photographs may show one specimen; check each caption and licence.
Historical context
The pack was given to the museum by Mr A. Myers Smith and accessioned in 1926.
Physical characteristics
- Material
- printed card
- Dimensions
- Height (individual card): 4.0625 in; Width (individual card): 2.1875 in
Technical characteristics
- Maker recorded
- Unknown
- Place recorded
- France
Identification
- Source note
- Transcribed from the Victoria and Albert Museum collection record for this single object; how far it represents a wider collectible type has not been independently verified.
- Museum object name
- Playing card pack
- Museum object number
- E.1546-1926
Catalogue references
No catalogue numbers recorded. Numbers are only published once transcribed from a verified edition of a standard catalogue — they are never inferred.