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Re: Weird Old German Book and 17th Century Teaching Card Games

Posted: 21 Jan 2011, 23:10
by Huck
... :-) ... already the reading isn't easy, and usually he hasn't anything of importance to say:

Ach fluchet nicht beim Spiel!
wie dieser Kerl zu B(?)ude
Der über dem, daß er zum Spiel
die Teufel lude,
Auch einem Crucifix viel Wun-
den gab und Schnitte:
Drüber er durchstochen ward:
Ach fluchet nicht beim Spiel.

Don't curse during the game!
as this guy in Bude (that should be a location)
who (über dem .. poetical style) in the attempt, that he for a game
invited the devils,
also gave a cruzifix much hur-
tings and cuts:
meanwhile he was durchstochen = "killed with a sword"
Don't curse during the game!

Anyway, the texts are usually boring. No deep philosophical mysteries. Always somebody makes a blasphemy, and then it takes a bad end. This seems to be typical for this German after-the-30-years-war period literature, one bad story hunts the other ... similar to some modern newspaper of the lower quality nowadays.

Re: Weird Old German Book and 17th Century Teaching Card Games

Posted: 21 Jan 2011, 23:58
by marco
Thank you Huck. This is a beautiful deck, also the others seem to be very interesting.
I don't think this text is boring...I am not particularly fond of deep philosophical mysteries :)

Re: Weird Old German Book and 17th Century Teaching Card Games

Posted: 22 Jan 2011, 01:15
by Huck
marco wrote:Thank you Huck. This is a beautiful deck, also the others seem to be very interesting.
I don't think this text is boring...I am not particularly fond of deep philosophical mysteries :)
... :-) ... it becomes boring, if you really have read enough of them and all this blood mixed with the accompanying steady pious exclamations drops from the ceiling. It aren't the cards alone. The whole accompanying book is full of murder stories, and these have more place to develop, not only the six lines.
And it isn't Praetorius alone, Harsdörfer und Finx, whose deck or decks I haven't found till now, write occasionally the same stuff.

Here is another deck, this are a little less murder-stories in the old testament, this time by a cleric, Andreas Strobl. It isn't sure, that these were really cards, but he wrote a book structured in the manner of a card deck - with 32 pictures in 4 parts with 8 pictures according the German suits:

Das Geistliche Teutsche KartenSpil Das ist: Ausführliche Erzehlung was massen das Israelitische Volck im Alten Testament so wunderlich vermischt und hin und wieder getrieben worden ; Auch was sich mit Demselben und Anderen im Alt= und Neuen TestamentMerckwüdiges hat zugetragen.
In Vier Thail
Hertz= Schell= Grün= und Eichel=Farb
abgetheilt und mit 32 schönen Kupfern gezieret;
Allwo alle Blätter in Sonderheit ausgelegt und mit beygesetzter Moral= oder Sitten=Lehre durch Geist'= und Wltliche Historien und Geschichten, Sprüch= und Reim=Verfassungen expliziert und gezieret.

http://books.google.com/books?id=NbVCAA ... &q&f=false

Written 1685, this version is from 1693. Teaching religious content, the stories of the bible.

Here's a version of 1691, with other perhaps better technique
http://www.bsb-muenchen-digital.de/~web ... nav=0&l=de

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Re: Weird Old German Book and 17th Century Teaching Card Games

Posted: 22 Jan 2011, 04:13
by Huck
Teaching game, geographical cards

Seyfried, Johann Heinrich / Pfann, Wilhelm / Hoffmann, Johann: [Geographische Spielkarten], S.l. [Nürnberg], [1678]

http://daten.digitale-sammlungen.de/bsb00041703/image_1

***************

Re: Weird Old German Book and 17th Century Teaching Card Games

Posted: 23 Jan 2011, 01:00
by Huck
PASQUIN'S WINDKAART OP DE WINDNEGOTIE VAN'T IAAR 1720

http://www.williamreesecompany.com/shop ... 34475.html
Amsterdam: Nullenstein Lautje van Schotten, ca. 1721]. Fifty-two cards, plus title card and publisher's card, for a total of fifty-four cards. 2 x 3 1/2 inches each. 16mo. Each card backed on 19th-century heavy card. Bright and clean. Later ownership notation on verso of each card. Very good. In a morocco solander case. Second edition, after the first of the previous year. The first edition was issued with a title card reading, APRIL KAART OF KAART SPEL VAN MOMUS NAAR DE NIEUWSTE MODE. Cards in both editions consist of an allegorical image set above humorous couplets. While the images in each set are primarily the same, the couplets are entirely different. According to Hargrave, a booklet was also issued with these cards, but it is absent here. This ornamental set of playing cards in the French suit system (hearts, clubs, diamonds, spades) lampoons John Law's Mississippi Bubble scheme, the South Sea Company, and other parties engaged in the disastrous speculation. The publisher's card bears the image of a large cock, which also appeared on John Law's arms. "John Law's Mississippi Bubble scheme started about 1717, was at its height in 1719, and collapsed in 1720, so that Law fled from Paris. There are several allusions to the South Sea Company. On the three of spades, the three companies, the South Sea, the Mississippi, and the West Indian, sit side by side in a swing. On the four of spades, Madame la Petite [represented here as a black cat] is supposed to mean the wife of Thomas Knight, the cashier of the South Sea Company, who bought his shares in her name" - Hargrave. This series of cards can also be found as a plate in the HET GROOTE TAFEREEL DER DWAASHEID... (Amsterdam, 1720), the great Mississippi Bubble satirical plate book. Here the engraved area of the cards is slightly taller, which confirms the present set is from an entirely different engraving than that which appears in the book. This set is the second in a series of satirical Dutch playing cards. A set issued in 1719 made fun of a series of Papal scandals and was suppressed by the Catholic Church. A later set, done in 1740, satirized the various peoples of the world. An attractive series of playing cards, rooted in a great early American land scheme. Complete early 18th-century sets of playing cards are extremely rare. CARY COLLECTION, HOL 26. D. HOFFMAN 1973, pp.45, 47. MUSEUM WILLET HOLTHUSYEN 1976, p.73, no. 62. LADY SCHREIBER 1892, I:12. HARGRAVE, pp.163-65
Description of Willshire:
http://books.google.com/books?id=3bcAIk ... 22&f=false

see also HET GROOTE TAFEREEL DER DWAASHEID

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bjacques/s ... 015946994/

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Not a playing card, but a critique on the excessive speculation before 1720, which led to ruin.

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A few of the pictures remember Tarot motifs, as this obvious "Father Time", who burns papers. A lot of the cards show flying papers .. this are not playing cards, but shareholder-papers, which lost any value. So the name "Windkaart" and also the previous "April"-name ("Fool of April") have satirical meaning.

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A Samson as Fortitudo and a cock from the producer card with name "Lautje van Schotten"

Re: Weird Old German Book and 17th Century Teaching Card Games

Posted: 23 Jan 2011, 02:55
by Huck
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A Hannibal of a deck "Vorstellung fürtrefflicher Männer" of Johann Stridbeck der Jüngere ((* 1665 in Augsburg; † 19. Dezember 1714 in Augsburg) in Augsburg 1685.

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Biography of the artist (his father had been also copperplate engraver)
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johann_Str ... C3%BCngere

More pictures
http://a.trionfi.eu/WWPCM/WWPCM/germany/stridbeck.htm

*************

The following are likely 2 decks, which were mentioned in the Chiromancy text of Praetorius, about which I talked earlier. A source wrote:
Dann folgte erst 1660 (nicht 1659), oder eigentlich erst 1661: 2) „Eine Zigeunerkarte oder Chiromantienspiel“, Nürnberg bei Joh. Hoffmann, 28 unbeziff. Bll. 12° (Berlin), deutsch, zum Theil in Versen, den Mitgliedern der polnischen Nation in Leipzig gewidmet. Die eigentlichen Karten, Abbildungen der Hände und ihrer Linien enthaltend, fehlten bei dem von mir benutzten Exemplare.


and I gave the comment:
The starting title "Eine Zigeunerkarte oder Chiromantienspiel" means translated: "A Gipsy card or Chiromantic game". The author of the biography seems to know, that there were cards, but they are missing in his version. The whole project (a small book with cards) developed to two other works.

German astrowiki states about it:
http://wiki.astro.com/astrowiki/de/Johannes_Praetorius
Eine Zigeunerkarte oder Chiromantienspiel. Nürnberg bei Joh. Hoffmann
Über den Tarot und die Chirologie.
Which would mean, that it contains something about Tarot, but this seems to be nonsense.
Now here are 2 cards of two decks with a little different font, c. 1655-1660

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Detlef Hoffmann (playing card researcher) noted 1972:
Nürnberg 1659 (?): Chiromantenkarte aus 2 Spielen, Kupferstich und Buchdruck mit der Schablone kolriert, 12,3 x 6,3 cm bzw. 10,0x5,7 mm ... vielleicht stammt dieses Spiel aus der Werkstatt des Johann Hoffmann.

Johann Hoffmann (printer) had made also the astronomical cards of Praetorius.

***************

John Lenthall (an English producer of many teachings decks) has a a biography in the first issue of the PPCS 1972, which is given here:

http://i-p-c-s.org/journal/1-1.html

And we've various of his decks also in Alexander Sukhorukow's Playing card Museum:

http://a.trionfi.eu/WWPCM/WWPCM/uk/lenthall.htm

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Re: Weird Old German Book and 17th Century Teaching Card Games

Posted: 23 Jan 2011, 16:27
by Huck
Conrad Stappf, deck with animal pictures

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Hoffmann dates this deck to begin of 18th century, but somewhere I read a note, that a Conrad Stappf, engraver, lived till 1701 only. A trader of art called Johann Ulrich Stappf (a brother ?), also in Augsburg, lived from 1642 bis 1706.

more cards offered by Galerie Bassenge:
http://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/4483477

These bible pictures are assumed to from the same designer:

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**************

Jeremias Wolff

we have two decks in the museum.
http://a.trionfi.eu/WWPCM/WWPCM/germany/wolff.htm

Occupations, 1690
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Costumes in Augsburg
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This is given as a design for playing cards, but the medallion testifies, that it is made for a book ... :-)

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This article tells, that Jeremias Wolff started in 1697 in Augsburg a publishing house for engraving art, which in few years developed a dominant influence on productions for book-design and involved the cooperation of many artists:
http://books.google.com/books?id=k6wyEJ ... &q&f=false

****************

As addition to Seyfried 1678 ...
it goes again back to Praetorius and Harsdörfer


I wrote
Teaching game, geographical cards

Seyfried, Johann Heinrich / Pfann, Wilhelm / Hoffmann, Johann: [Geographische Spielkarten], S.l. [Nürnberg], [1678]

http://daten.digitale-sammlungen.de/bsb00041703/image_1
we have a few of this cards in the Museum:

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in digital collection it looked like this ..

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more or less definitely the same deck

http://a.trionfi.eu/WWPCM/decks02/d00371/d00371.htm

... but Sascha added the note, that Praetorius took part in the production, so I'm a little bit confused, cause the digital collection didn't mention him, instead Seyfried - Pfann - Hoffmann.

Maybe Sacha made a mistake'? Hm ...

... let's take up Praetorius again, that's the man:

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... and the picture has added a nice Chiromancy-hand, do you see it?

And there is a book in English, so hoo at least should be enjoyed ... :-)

http://books.google.com/books?id=4ILELR ... hy&f=false

... well, the book book offers nothing about "playing" and nothing about "cards" (so says the search engine), but mentions 16x the word geography.

His German Biography (which doesn't claim to know all his writings) notes:
From http://de.wikisource.org/wiki/ADB:Praet ... Dichter%29

„Astrologia Germanica et Germana d. i. Eine neu erfundene Geographische Astrologie, drinnen der eigentliche und unfehlbare Dieterich zur höchsten Wunder-Kammer Gottes anzutreffen stehet …“ Leipzig, Frommann, 1665 (deutsch). 3 Bll. 258 S., 4° (Berlin). Ist den „Herren General-Staten“ gewidmet.

Philologico-Historicum Schediasma de Bruma, Vom Luzien-Tage.“ (lat.) 1667. 9 Bg. 4°. (Dr.) War, wie schon erwähnt, die von ihm als Baccalaureus am 13. Decbr. 1654 gehaltene Disputation. In diesem Drucke erwähnt er zwei Werke als bevorstehend, deren Erscheinen mir nicht bekannt geworden ist: a) „Tractatus geographicus historico-physicus, Elevationis polaris usus centuplex cum refutatione Jesuitae quoad Poli mutabilitatem, dilucidans Θεῖα theocratiae seu mirabilia opera Numinis“, und b) „Supplantatio Barbarossae a Rolando, opusculum omnia propemodum complectens, quae hactenus pro et contra sparsim scripta sunt de hac materia, cum destructione negantium ex historicis et arcanis principiis“.

„Blocks-Berges Verrichtung, oder ausführlicher geographischer Bericht von den hohen trefflich alt- und berühmten Blocks-Berge, ingleichen von der Hexenfahrt und Zauber-Sabbathe, so auff solchen Berge die Unholden aus gantz Teutschland jährlich den 1. Maij in Sanct-Walpurgis Nachte anstellen sollen. Aus vielen Autoribus abgefasset, und mit schönen Raritäten angeschmücket sampt zugehörigen Figuren“ (deutsch). Leipzig u. Frankfurt a. M. 1668. 582 S. 8° und 9 Bll. Appendix, enthaltend die Schilderung einer Harzreise und eines Besuches der „Baumans Höle“. (Lpz.) Nach Goedeke auch 1669 in Leipzig. Die Anführung Descriptio geographia de Meliboco meint wohl dasselbe Werk. Hierin sagt er bei Erwähnung des „Hexen-Spiels am Johannestage“: „Mehr Sachen erwarte hiervon künfftig, geliebts Gott, in meinem großen Johannes-Buch“.

So Praetorius had to do (at least a little bit with geography and he defintely knew Hoffmann, the printer in Nürnberg - Hoffmann made the astronomical cards in 1663, likely also the Chiromancy cards a little bit earlier.

Cherchez la femme and don't overlook the locations (a good advice fo biographical research): He married a Barbara Röhrmeister from Saalfeld in 1659 (the year in which he became poetus Laureatus and also the time, when Praetorius started to become "great" with his Chiromancy). It doesn't surprize, that Saalfeld (Röhrmeister) is located right in the middle between Nürnberg (printer Hoffmann) and Leipzig (Praetorius).

...

I've to go back to Harsdörfer: Harsdörfer worked together with the printer Endter (Nürnberg):

The Endter-family had a long business:
http://www.wlb-stuttgart.de/sammlungen/ ... er-bibeln/
Von 1613 bis 1792, also beinahe 2 Jahrhunderte lang, druckte die erfolgreiche Familie Endter in Nürnberg den Text von Luthers Bibel. Heute zählen die großformatigen (Folio-) Ausgaben zu den noch am häufigsten anzutreffenden Familienbibeln aus dem 17., besonders aber aus dem 18. Jahrhundert. Die Leistungsfähigkeit und Kompetenz der Druckerei, sowie die Verkehrsgunst des Handelsplatzes Nürnberg veranlasste die sächsischen Herzöge, Ihre repräsentativen Bibel jenseits der eigenen Grenzen drucken und vertreiben zu lassen.


It seems, that Luther's bible had been their best product. It seems they had a dominant position in this business. It seems, that the dukes of Saxony early started to have their representative bibles printed in Nurremberg (ouside of Saxony). Leipzig belongs to Saxony - and Praetorius belonged to Leipzig (since about 1652).
Harsdörfer seems to have been the big literary manager in Nürnberg and on a side path he made also teachings cards - with Endter.

As already told, I found this note:
As I found out, this production had been (at least) a second edition. I found a note about an older deck from 1655 (or 56):
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The printer Endter is presented also in our Playing Card Museum with 4 decks ...
http://a.trionfi.eu/WWPCM/WWPCM/germany/endter.htm
... this also teaching games (at least partly copies of the decks made for Louis XIV in 1444.

Es might be, that these cards preceded the astronomical game. Preceding geographical and historical decks are noted in the title of the astronomicakl deck ("geographischen und historischen spielkarten").
So Harsdörfer in 1655 or 1656 made his astronomical deck with Endter.

For the development of the Endter printing house we have as "participating persons" from the above linked webpage the information:
Georg Endter der Ältere (1562-1630)
Georg Endter der Jüngere (1585-1629)
Wolfgang Endter der Ältere (1597-1659)
Wolfgang Endter der Jüngere ( -1655)

Wolfgang Moritz Endter
Johann Andreas Endter der Ältere (1625-1670)
Johann Andreas Endter der Jüngere (1653-1690)
Georg Andreas Endter (1654-1717) oo Klara Katharina Endter ( -1727)
Wolfgang Andreas Endter (1659-1682)
Dorothea Maria Endter oo Dr. Friedrich Ernst Finkler ( -1704)
Georg Ernst Finkler
Christoph Endter (1632-1672)
Anne-Marie Endter (1665-1679)
Paul Endter (1639-1662)
Seit 1747: Kauf durch Paulus Mann: "Johann Andreas Endtersche Handlung"
So we have two cases of death in 1655 (Wolfgang Endter der Jüngere, likely the son and possible heir) and 1659 (Wolfgang Endter der Ältere, then 62 years old, likely the chief of the printer house). Another source describes the development in this way:
http://www.deutsche-biographie.de/sfz98494.html
Endtner, eine nürnbergische Buchhändler- und Buchdruckerfamilie. Georg E., geb. um das Jahr 1562, kann als der Stammvater des Buchdruckergeschlechtes gleichen Namens betrachtet werden; er übergab noch bei
Lebzeiten 1612 seinem Sohne Wolfgang dem Aelteren die Handlung und das Geschäft und starb im J. 1630. Dieser Wolfgang war am 4. Juli 1593 zu Nürnberg geboren|und zweimal verheirathet, das erste Mal 1620 mit Maria Daniel Oeders und das zweite Mal 1658 mit Anna Regina Schuberts. Er hatte während des dreißigjährigen Krieges viel zu erdulden, wurde geplündert und sogar gefänglich weggeführt, dennoch blühte sein Geschäft; er stand 47 Jahre lang drei Druckereien vor und starb den 17. Mai 1659. Sein Verlag war ein sehr reicher und guter, sowie seine Drucke sich durch Correctheit und Nettigkeit auszeichneten. Unter anderen sind die berühmten "Gesprächspiele" von Harsdörfer in seinem Verlage erschienen. Sein Sohn Christoph E. führte das Geschäft von 1660—1674, dann wurde es von dessen Tochter Anna Maria bis 1680 geführt, und demnächst unter der Firma: "Wolf Moritz Endtner und Joh. Andreas Endtner seel. Söhne" bis 1684 verwaltet ...
Harsdörfer is the only author cooperator, who is noted in the description. Harsdörfer died in 1658, a year later the old Endter. This seems to have changed the business ... the next card productions in Nürnberg are made by the printer Hoffmann in strong influence by the "foreign" Praetorius, who somehow filled the role of Harsdörfer for the next 20 years - and died then, relatively young (50 years) during a plague in 1680.

I've a smaller book: "600 Jahre Nürnberger Kartenmacher und 10 Jahre Nürnberger Spielkarten-Verlag" of about 40 pages written by strong cooperation with Franz Braun, here in Cologne. Braun (or the publisher) keeps the period relatively short. Interesting notes are, that the number of card producers in Nürnberg (after a heavy loss during the 30-years-war), in 1685 had increased on 5, and in 1746. Further he says:
"... viele Ereignisse der jewiligen Epochen (fanden) ihren Niederschlag auf den Karten. Es entstanden Kartenspiele zu den verschiedenen Kriegen und Friedensschlüssen. Lehrspiele mit Themen wie Astrologie, historische Trachten, antike Götter, berühmte Frauenzimmer ...
Praetorius is mentioned with geographical themes, historical themes, astronomy, astrology and Chiromancy.

Further he notes a copperplate engraving play with reigning personalities in Vienna during the Osmanic siege and symbolic figures for the 4 social ranks as suit system (not a good reproduction in the book) from 1685:

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Re: Weird Old German Book and 17th Century Teaching Card Games

Posted: 23 Jan 2011, 19:38
by Huck
A few material, which belongs to the categories "17th century" and "teaching games" I found at the webpage MGM Joker AG, who, btw, have an interesting catalog with many pictures (for money), which is online (free).
http://www.muenzgalerie.de/kataloge/pdf ... og_034.pdf

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We have it in the Museum together with an edition of 1658
http://a.trionfi.eu/WWPCM/decks02/d00309/d00309.htm

A deck near to the production date (it is fom 1693 in Amsterdam_) I found offered for 22.000 Euro
http://www.asherbooks.com/ACGDQB01U79O_v.html
... some nice pictures with description of book etc.

A reconstructed deck I saw for c. 3,50 Euro at a Spanish page. Rather big differences.

A Louis d'Hozier wrote ...
http://books.google.com/books?id=9Bw-AA ... le&f=false
.... in 1752 a book "Armorial général de la France", in which he wrote in a footnote, that a Pierre d'Hozier had died in Nov. 1660, and that ...

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... and this seems to be the mystery of this deck. First d'Hozier became a dedication of a book from Orance Finé de Brianville, Abbe de Saint Benoist de Quincey, and then his son in 1696 became also a dedication in a book of Père Menestrier, the Father-figure of all European playing card research. Both books had as object playing card decks with heraldic elements. And if the Nürnberger Harsdörfer have lived a little longer, he also likely would have made such a deck - he also had this heraldic interests, about which likely learned about by his many early journeys.
This much honored Pierre d'Hozier had a strong interest in genealogy and must have used a lot of energy in it. "Il a composé la Généalogie des principales familles de France, ouvrage immense, en cent cinquante volumes, resté manuscrit."

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His son Charles-René d'Hozier (honored by Menestrier) had the same interest and painted 120.000 heraldic shields.

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I'm not sure, but the reporting Louis-Pierre d'Hozier was likely Louis-Pierre, a nephew of Charles-René and he had the same interests.

http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pierre_d%27Hozier
http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Re ... d%27Hozier
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis-Pierre_d%27Hozier

Menestrier, father of playing card research ...

http://autorbis.net/pere-menestrier

... should have made this deck in 1696 (and dedicated it to Charles-René, the son) ...

http://www.bm-lyon.fr/expo/virtuelles/m ... cartes.htm

... with book (just for the case, that Menestrier made only one deck)

And here we have another offer of MGM-Joker ......

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..... which is just a reprint of the Brianville book, as it seems.

**********
An English playing card deck about Geraldic is indepedent from the French development:
"Geraldic", 1684, by Richard Blome
(possibly this was done, cause the English king died 1684 and a new one was expected ?)

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Deck:
http://a.trionfi.eu/WWPCM/decks04/d03543/d03543.htm

Richard Blome as mapmaker
http://www.mapforum.com/09/9blome.htm
His deck is described here:
http://books.google.com/books?id=HzA9AQ ... ic&f=false

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*************

A further English "Geraldic" deck in 1688, likely in the context of of the coronation ceremonies for William and Mary in February 1689.
As engraver is given as Gregory King, likely this man, who is also known as engraver ...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gregory_King
... who found a longer life description in this book, at page 25 (page 37 in the document-viewer):
http://ia700300.us.archive.org//load_dj ... duoft.djvu
... in which the events from end of 1688 are described in this manner (p. 38/39; 50/51 in the viewer):

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Playing Cards in the Museum:
http://a.trionfi.eu/WWPCM/decks04/d03537/d03537.htm

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***********

Deck: "Scotch heraldic" c. 1690 ... I cannot verify a context to the noted engraver

http://a.trionfi.eu/WWPCM/decks04/d03614/d03614.htm

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***********

A further heraldic deck, given to 1685
http://bodley30.bodley.ox.ac.uk:8180/lu ... ing-cards-

Re: Weird Old German Book and 17th Century Teaching Card Games

Posted: 23 Jan 2011, 22:02
by hoo
This is a great direction for this thread. Teaching Cards. It is an area I am very fascinated with. Even more than with the standard Tarot. It was while I was studying mnemonic systems (and not yet under the spell of the Tarot) that I read about Thomas Murners book/ card deck - 'Logica Memorativa'. Then, when I got on the internet in 2004, I discovered Trionfi.com and their illustrated piece on his work
http://trionfi.com/0/j/d/murner/
Many more books/card decks with various kinds of pedagogical intent have been listed by Huck, here in this thread. Looking at them, It is interesting to see how these types of card decks were used like books, and how some books were used like bound decks of cards.
I began a study of 'emblem books' a full year ago. There are many which can fall into this broad category as well.

It is further interesting to see that way back toward the time of the beginnings of the Tarot deck, some varieties of other phantasmagoric card decks and books often accompanied each other (Many of the works of Praetorius, author of the weird old book at the start of this thread, being a prime example), just as they do today for the Tarot decks proper. I do wonder if there is an early historical example of a book connected to a specific Tarot deck. This seems to be quite common with teaching decks, and so I can't help but expect that it was true with the Tarot. Are there unknown companion volumes, 'lost books' of the Tarot ?

Re: Weird Old German Book and 17th Century Teaching Card Games

Posted: 23 Jan 2011, 22:11
by Huck
hoo wrote:This is a great direction for this thread. Teaching Cards. It is an area I am very fascinated with. Even more than with the standard Tarot. It was while I was studying mnemonic systems (and not yet studying the Tarot) that I read about Thomas Murners book/ card deck - 'Logica Memorativa'. Then, when I got on the internet in 2004, I discovered Trionfi.com and their illustrated piece on his work
http://trionfi.com/0/j/d/murner/
Many more books/card decks with various kinds of pedagogical intent have been listed by Huck, here in this thread. Looking at them, It is interesting to see how these types of card decks were used like books, and how some books were used like bound decks of cards.
I began a study of 'emblem books' a full year ago. There are many which can fall into this broad category as well.

It is further interesting to see that way back toward the time of the beginnings of the Tarot deck, some varieties of other phantasmagoric card decks and books often accompanied each other (Many of the works of Praetorius, author of the weird old book at the start of this thread, being a prime example), just as they do today for the Tarot decks proper ...
Yes ... the teaching deck question. There is floating line between exclusive special deck and "just a teaching deck".
I do wonder if there is an early historical example of a book connected to a specific Tarot deck. This seems to be quite common with teaching decks, and so I can't help but expect that it was true with the Tarot. Are there unknown companion volumes, 'lost books' of the Tarot ?
Hm ... do you know the Michelino deck? The earliest Tarot cards? These had a book ... actually only the cards are missing. There's the first example of Tarot or better Trionfi deck ... and it's "only" a book.

Actually it teaches "Greek gods". The line between teaching deck and playing deck is floating.