Birkel Schwarzer Peter
The Birkel company has produced several promotional “Schwarzer Peter” packs over the years and this one is themed on the circus.
Birkel Schwarzer Peter Zirkus Kartenspiel
The Birkel company is Germany’s No. 1 noodle manufacturer and the first Birkel-brand noodle products came onto the market as early as 1902. The company has produced several promotional “Schwarzer Peter” packs over the years and this one is themed on the circus. Noodles can be seen on both sides of the box and the Birkel logo is printed on each card, showing typical circus acts.
The set contains 12 matching pairs of circus cards plus a “Schwarzer Peter” card showing a clown being thrown off a donkey. This is the “loser” card and the object of the game is complete matching pairs and to avoid being left holding this single card.
By Simon Wintle
Member since February 01, 1996
Founder and editor of the World of Playing Cards since 1996. He is a former committee member of the IPCS and was graphics editor of The Playing-Card journal for many years. He has lived at various times in Chile, England and Wales and is currently living in Extremadura, Spain. Simon's first limited edition pack of playing cards was a replica of a seventeenth century traditional English pack, which he produced from woodblocks and stencils.
Related Articles
Woodblock and Stencil Queen of Clubs
A limited edition art print of the Queen of Clubs 1984 woodblock joker.
Woodblock and Stencil King of Diamonds
A limited edition art print of the King of Diamonds 1984 woodblock joker.
Woodblock and Stencil Jack of Clubs
A limited edition art print of the Jack of Clubs 1984 woodblock joker.
Woodblock and Stencil Joker
A limited edition art print of the 1984 woodblock joker.
Miniature spanish-suited playing cards
Pack of 48 miniature spanish playing-cards published by C R.
Uncut Sheet by Johann Jobst Forster
A proof sheet containing twelve court cards of conventional French type.
Club Soft Drinks
Promotional pack for Club soft drinks with amusing illustrations of different kinds of ‘club’.
Mit Rhino auftrumpfen
Black rhinos on a publicity pack for Armstrong, a flooring company, with comic designs by Pit Flick....
Marmite
Fifty-Four images celebrating a UK savoury spread, that has been around one hundred and twenty two y...
G&G Armament playing cards
G&G Armament Airsoft replica gun playing cards from Taiwan.
Walt Disney Cards II
Mickey, Minnie, Pluto and other familiar Disney characters.
Absolut Deck
Promotional deck published for Absolut Vodka in Sweden.
Kuzco, l’empereur mégalo
Notched cards featuring toys representing characters from the Disney film Kuzco, as offered by McDon...
Hilti I
Promotional pack for Hilti power tools, with courts in medieval costume and non-standard pips.
Transair
Humorous designs promoting Transair, a German charter flight operator.
Merz Pharma Skat
Comic designs promoting Merz Pharma, a German drug company.
escART, ec-ART, SKAT
Fully illustrated pack printed from etchings by Johannes Vennekamp.
Feh Schnapskarten
Colourful promotional pack for Feh household and toilet papers.
Hansaplast®
Advertising pack for Hansaplast, with comic courts sporting sticking plasters.
Lorilleux International
Promotional pack for Lorilleux International’s Lotus inks, with designs by James Hodges.
B. Braun-Dexon®
Publicity pack promoting B. Braun-Dexon’s atraumatic needles, with non-standard courts and pips.
Bibaraja
Amusing designs of boys as circus performers by Alberto Muñiz Sánchez.
54 Affiches Retro
54 different old French advertising posters, mainly for travel and health products.
Loewe: Moda Europea Siglo XVII
Luxury pack for the Spanish fashion house Loewe, with 17th century costume designs by Margot Hamilto...
ČZ playing cards
Advertising pack for the Czechoslovak motorcycle factory Česká Zbrojovka.
Miniature Card Dominoes
A miniature set of Goodall domino cards (5.9 x 3.5 cms) still in perfect condition.
Bischofszell
Advertising pack for the food producer Bischofszell, designed by Heinz Looser-Brenner, with non-stan...
Wedding of Krechinsky • Свадьба Кречинского
A pack of cards depicting characters from the famous play "The Wedding of Krechinsky" by Sukhovo-Kob...
Scheffmacher
Advertising pack for Scheffmacher, master painters in Schaffhausen, with comic designs by Fritz Bünz...
Freimaurer Spielkarten / Masonic playing cards
Masonic playing cards created by Ivan Wojnikow, 2004.
Knoll International
Geometric designs by the French artist Jean Garçon for Knoll International, the furniture company.
SEMP playing cards
Modified Anglo-American courts advertising a French medical publishing company.
Orientierungslauf Skat
Humorous designs by Helmut Härtelt on the subject of orienteering.
Borna Skat
Publicity pack for the Saxon town of Borna, with designs by Andreas Wachter.
Postgeschichte
A celebration of different postal systems in Germany from 1630 to 1850, with designs by Volker Hartm...
Kings and Queens of Brazil & Portugal
Historical playing cards by C. L. Wüst depicting monarchs of Brazil and Portugal.
Campari playing cards
Publicity pack for Campari, designed for the Portuguese or Brazilian market.
Sylvanian Families mini playing cards
Miniature cards in sheet form with Sylvanian Families characters on the courts and Jokers.
Hôtels-Grils Campanile
Publicity pack for the Campanile hotel and restaurant chain featuring French provincial costumes, wi...
Mythological tarot by Michael Schatzberger
Mythological tarot by Michael Schatzberger, Passau, Bavaria, early 19th century.
Ansbach pattern by Emil Doll
Later Ansbach or Nürnberg pattern by Emil Doll, Neustadt.
Cartomancy deck by Johann Ernst Backofen
German-suited Cartomancy deck published by Johann Ernst Backofen, Nürnberg.
Trappola pack by Joseph Fetscher
Trappola pack published by Joseph Fetscher, Graz, 1739.
Animal Tarot by Joseph Fetscher
French-suited Natural History Tarot deck by Joseph Fetscher, Munich, c.1820.