Playing Cards in Denmark
Spillekort i Danmark
The earliest mention of playing-cards in Denmark dates from 1487 when King Hans, who reigned from 1481-1513 and was notorious for his gambling, again and again drew money from the treasury to pay for his losses. Cards were mostly imported from France and Belgium. An early existing pack of cards known to be printed in Denmark is an Animal Tarok pack which follows Belgian designs, made by the printer Jean Friedrich Mayer, who had been granted a royal licence to print playing-cards from 1752-1783.
Mayer's licence was taken over in 1783 by Christoffer Ernst Süsz, who was joined in 1790 by Kunze, and who also produced Animal Tarok packs, as well as Paris-type packs with single-ended and named courts. Similar packs were produced by Pierre Steinman (active 1798-1820).
The game of Gnau consists of forty-two cards and is the Danish version of the old game of Cucu.
← Left: Jack of Spades by Christoffer Ernst Süsz.
He has a leaping dog and the name 'Hogier'
in accordance with French tradition.
The Holmblad Dynasty
Above: two Jacks from an Animal Tarok deck by Jacob Holmblad, c.1830, following continental designs.
The most celebrated Danish cardmakers belonged to the Holmblad family. Jacob Holmblad came from Sweden in about 1766. The production of playing-cards by the Holmblad family started with the granting of a royal licence in 1820 to Jacob Holmblad (1791-1837). To begin with he carried on the European influence already established by his predecessors and published continental-style decks and Animal Tarok decks following Belgian designs. But then he dropped the French names from the court cards and began introducing changes into the designs so that over time original and new patterns emerged with a distinctive Danish flavour.
Above: artwork for early L.P. Holmblad deck, c.1845
Above: historical cards, L.P.Holmblad c.1850
Above: cards by L.P.Holmblad, c.1860
Above: original artwork for a completely new figure for the Jack of Hearts playing the part of Amor with a bow and arrow in his left hand and a heart dangling in his fingertips in his right hand, possibly inspired by Hans Christian Andersen. Image courtesy Hans J. Hinrup.
After his death in 1837, playing-card production was continued by his son Lauritz Peter Holmblad (1815-1890) who rejuvenated some of his father's patterns and commissioned new designs incorporating ideas of his own. It was he who was the real founder and developer of the Holmblad patterns. The royal licence was formally transferred to him in 1841, and Holmblad became a household name which appears on Danish packs even today. In his diary in 1865 he wrote: “Various improvements were introduced into my production this year... such as a new printing machine, a stereotype press and a polishing machine...”
In around 1850 L. P. Holmblad parted from the tradition of Animal Tarock packs and published newly-designed packs depicting prominent buildings from in and around Copenhagen (click on images).
After L.P. Holmblad's death in 1892 the Copenhagen factory was closed. Holmblad's successor S. Salomon acquired the rights to use these playing-card designs and continued producing packs under the Holmblad name. Hereafter the Holmblad house patterns were printed as brand names by foreign makers such as Wüst of Germany, Piatnik of Austria, as well as Belgian manufacturers and even Waddingtons of England see more →
Conjuring cards
Above: special double-ended playing cards for conjuring with comical figures made by Richard Beber, Copenhagen late 19th century.
Adolph Wulff of Copenhagen published L'Hombre No.60, Luxuskarte No.75 and Whist No.80 manufactured in Germany by Dondorf GmBH in the late 1920s and early 1930s. During the 1930s, the UK manufacturer Alf Cooke produced special packs for export to Denmark. Also, De La Rue manufactured special packs to commemorate King Christian X of Denmark in 1935 and 1937. The principal cardmaker in Denmark today is Handa.
Above: King Christian IV Anniversary pack, 1988
Above: Nationalkortet - Danish Kings & Queens, c.1930
REFERENCES
Hinrup, Hans J.: The Holmblad Playing Card Patterns, in "The Playing-Card" vol.33 no.4, IPCS London, Apr-June 2005.
Jensen, K. Frank: Royalty on Danish Playing Cards, The Playing-Card vol.32 no.1, IPCS, July-Aug 2003.
Jensen, K. Frank: French suited tarot packs in Denmark and the Jacob Holmblad Animal tarot, in "The Playing-Card" vol.36 no.3, IPCS London, Apr-June 2008. [download here].
Images courtesy Hans Jørgen Hinrup and K. Frank Jensen.