Umberto Padovani and Angelo Milano in IPCS 34/3, p. 205 ff. (2006) report early documents about playing cards in Mantova, mostly in context of the Gonzaga family. The quote is from Stefano L'Occaso in "Fonti archivisti per le arti a Mantova tra Medioevo e Rinascimento (1382-1459)", (2005).

1. A letter written by Francesco Gonzaga (1366-1407), ruler in Mantova, in Gozzolo at 29 October 1388 to Galeazzo de Buzoni.
The document was in part already published in 1921 by Pia Gorilla in "Pittori e miniatori a Mantova ... " in "Atti e memorie della R. Accademia Virgiliana, XI-XIII, 1918-20 (1921), pp. 185-187.
As a note of the authors this document is noted after 3 bans (Florence 1377, Siena 1377, Sicily 1377-1391) and chronicles (Viterbo) as the 5th oldest Italian document. Also it's the first document, which shows playing card interests of Italian nobility. The action is rather near in time to the wedding of Valentina Visconti, from which it is assumed, that Valentia brought a Lombard playing card deck to France. So perhaps this was a time of special interest or playing cards.





2. Inventory at death of Franesco Gonzaga 1407: "ludus cartarum novarum a ludendo, non parvi preci et mirabiliter pictarum" and "par cartarum a ludendo, magnum et antiquatum".

3. A pen drawing at a leather cover of an account book from 1425-27, which shows a figure seated on a throne, with some similarity to a "Queen of Baton"



5. A paper register containing a will (29 February 1432) and inventory (16 August 1432) of Isabella Gonzaga Malatesta (1463? - 1432) notes "tre gioghi de carte grande" between other things of minor value in a chest.

6. A Trionfi card note of 1465, reported already by Trionfi.com
http://trionfi.com/0/e/29/

Additionaly added from my side to the theme Gonzaga:

6. A further Trionfi card note (1484) in connection to the region of Sabbioneta (near Montova), referenced by Andre Vitali

7. Playing card notes around Isabella d'Este
viewtopic.php?f=11&t=432
viewtopic.php?f=11&t=500

8. The 1512 note of Tarochi cards in a theater play in Mantova and Verona (with involvement of Isabella Gonzaga and cardinal Gurk)
viewtopic.php?f=11&t=500&p=10668&hilit=gurk#p10668

9. Involvement of the Gonzaga in the Teofilo Folengo production "Triperuno" (with Tarocchi scene)
viewtopic.php?f=11&t=759

10. Gonzaga participation in the 1559 production of the Tarot de Paris
viewtopic.php?f=11&t=755

11. Participation of a Gonzaga princess for the first French Tarot rules (1637)
viewtopic.php?f=11&t=611

12. Some involvement of a Tarot ballet in 1657
viewtopic.php?f=11&t=751

13 ... there was also somethng in c. 1437 with teaching cards in the school of Vittorino da Feltre. Andrea Vitali reported this.

Francesco Gonzaga (1366-1407)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francesco_I_Gonzaga
... is the young man, who ordered the production of a worthwhile deck in 1388 in Mantova, then 22 years old and married to a daughter of Bernarbo Visconti. It's the same man, who in 1407 after his death had two playing card decks in his inventory.
The woman (Isabetta Gonzaga Malatesta (1463? - 1432)), also mentioned in the above article, who had after her death in 1432 three playing card decks in her inventory, had been ...

A2. [3m.] Ludovico II, Capitano del Popolo e Signore di Mantova (1369-82), Signore di Reggio (1369-71), *1334, +X.1382; m.16.2.1365 Alda d'Este (*18.6.1333 +1381)

B1. Francesco I, Signore di Mantova, Capitano del Popolo (1382-1407), vicario imperiale, *1366, +8.3.1407; 1m: 1380 Agnese Visconti (*ca 1362 +1391); 2m: 1393 Margherita Malatesta (+28.2.1399), dau.of Galeotto Signore di Rimini by Elisabetta da Varano dei Signori di Camerino
C1. [2m.] Gianfrancesco I, Signore di Mantova e Capitano del Popolo (1407-33), 1st Marchese di Mantova (1433-44), *1395, +Mantova 23.9.1444; m.1409 Paola Malatesta (*1393 +1449), dau.of Carlo I Signore di Rimini by Elisabetta Gonzaga dei Signori di Mantova
D1. Ludovico III "il Turco", Marchese di Mantova (1444-78), *Mantova 5.6.1414, +Goito 12.6.1478; m.Mantova 12.11.1433 Barbara von Hohenzollern (*1423 +7.11.1481)
.....
.....
B2. Elisabetta, +31.7.1432; m.1386 Carlo I Malatesta Signore di Rimini (+13.9.1429)
B3. [natural] Febo, he had further issue

... Elisabetta Gonzaga Malatesta, a cousin to Francesco I, but also she is mother-in-law to the son of Francesco I. And she was wife to Carlo Malatesta (the one, who had been prisoner to Filippo Maria Visconti in 1424 ... a time, in which was possibly the Michelino deck produced).

The date of the playing card document 1388 is rather near to 1389, the year of Valentina Visconti's marriage to Louis d'Orleans and Valentina is said to have had brought a worthwhile playing card deck to France. Indeed Francesco Gonzaga accompanied the bride journey and the festivities in France. Also not far is the year 1391, and then happened a scandal at the court of Mantova.



http://books.google.de/books?id=Hno0AAA ... ga&f=false

Agnese Visconti, the wife of Francesco Gonzaga, was tricked by Giangaleazzo in the manner, that her husband thought, that she had committed adultery. As a consequence he thought, he had to kill his wife. This happened 1391.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agnese_Visconti
Things were similar, as they were later with Beatrice di Tenda and Filippo Maria Visconti (1418) and with Parisina and Niccolo d'Este and son Ugo (1425).
As in the case of Parisina playing cards in some distance were involved.

1388-1391 is also time, in which the Carrara family is involved. As the Carrara family is also involved in the distribution of the Petrarca text ....

Huck wrote:
A pen drawing at a leather cover of an account book from 1425-27, which shows a figure seated on a throne, with some similarity to a "Queen of Baton"

More likely to have been a virtue or Fama although there are no distinguishable attributes on that poorly preserved (or reproduced) leather cover. A contemporary drawing by Lorenzo Monaco, ca. 1420:


The NY Met's description:
"Although historically given to the preeminent early fifteenth century Florentine painter Lorenzo Monaco, and considered part of Giorgio Vasari's celebrated Libro de' disegni, this rare metalpoint drawing has recently been ascribed to an unknown artist in Lorenzo's circle. Vasari's writings on Lorenzo Monaco describe a chiaroscuro drawing of theological Virtues made "with such fine design in so beautiful and graceful a style that it may well be better than the drawings of any other master of those times." This is indeed a chiaroscuro drawing depicting three Virtues, and the Roman numerals written at the upper right (in the same ink used to retrace the drapery) suggest that perhaps as early as the sixteenth century this was one of a series of sheets, or a page in a collector's album. Yet the evidence is insufficient to give the drawing to Lorenzo Monaco. The identification of the three Virtues as Temperance, Hope, and Fortitude (or Justice) has greater resonance, given the attributes and gestures of the seated women. There is no consensus on the identification of the seated old man, shown in three poses."

I would propose that the seated man was probably an examplar of a Virtue such as we find in the later work of Pesellino or Pollaiuollo. It is also noteworthy that Vasari knew of theological virtues but this surviving drawing is of the civic virtues, thus Monaco's workshop was probably turning out an influential series of the entire seven virtues before 1440 (and that the virtuoso chiaroscuro drew attention to these drawings, even down to Vasari's time).

Phaeded

The biography of Charles I Gonzaga of Nevers has the following entry:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_G ... Montferrat

In 1600, as duke of Rethel, he founded, in Nevers, the Order of the Yellow Ribbon, soon forbidden by the King, due to its peculiar character.

I attempted to get this detail cleared:

P. Hippolyt Helyots ausführliche Geschichte aller geistlichen und weltlichen Kloster-und Ritterorden führ beyderley Geschlecht: in welcher deren Ursprung, Stiftung, Regeln, Anwachs, und merkwürdigste Begebenheiten, die aus ihnen entstandenen oder auch nach ihren Mustern gebildeten Brüderschaften und Congregationen, imgleichen der Verfall und die Aufhebung einiger, nebst der Vergröserung anderer, durch die mit ihnen vorgenommenen Verbesserungen, wie auch die Lebensbeschreibungen der Stifter und Verbesserer hinlänglich vorgestellt, und die besondern Kleidungen eines jeden Ordens nebst den Ordenzeichen der Ritter in vielen Kupfern nach dem Leben abgebildet werden, Band 8
Pierre Hélyot
verlegts Arkstee und Merkus, 1756

The report (about 4 pages) is said to have been given by Clairambaut, possibly this man ...
https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicolas-P ... airambault

https://books.google.de/books?id=5AAMAA ... es&f=false

The young Carlo Gonzaga (duke of Nevers, * 1680, son Louis Gonzaga) had rather radical ideas ... either in 1600 or around 1604/05 (there are contradictions in the information). A sort of communist knight order, possibly also with ideas of free love. Henry forbade the organization 1605/06. Involved in the scandal is a game ... but not Tarot.
La Mora alias ..
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morra_(game)
https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morra_(Spiel)
... popular especially in Italy.