Luditz Pattern by Georg Geiselreiter

The Luditz/Luditzer Pattern (German: Luditzer Bild) is one of the historical patterns registered by The International Playing-Card Society¹. The pattern gained this autonomy, despite its rather minor historical significance, thanks to the interest of such experts as Klaus Reisinger and Sylvia Mann.

It is documented that the pattern developed in the area of northwestern Bohemia in the Sudetenland² - a historical German-speaking area. The name of the pattern is derived from the town of Žlutice³, German: Luditz. The expansion of local cards, which led to their codification as a separate pattern, was only contributed to by a subsequent development episode, when they appeared in the production of Viennese companies. Based on the originally available preserved cards, Reisinger frames this period roughly between 1892 and 1914⁴. He considers the edition of the Österreichischen Spielkartenfabriks-Gesellschaft to be the original⁵. It is their designation LUDITZER on the acorn ace that gives the name to this pattern. The motto is subsequently copied on subsequent editions by Josef Glanz / Piatnik and S.D. Modiano, and is a typical part of the Austrian development phase of the pattern.

A new discovery of 2024 is a deck by the manufacturer Georg Geiselreiter from Wiener Neustadt. His activity is documented there between 1854-1882⁶. This deck is thus the new oldest link in the Austrian development phase. From a comparison⁷ with the cards of the Österreichischen Spielkartenfabriks-Gesellschaft⁸, it is clear that their edition uses the Georg Geiselreiter’s matrix only with minor changes of a reductive nature and the addition of the manufacturer's own identification.

Geiselreiter’s cards are made as a woodcut with stencil coloring. The deck contains 32 cards measuring 56 x 93 mm, the reverse side is the wienerblitz (Vienna lightning) of the older development phase. I estimate the remains of the tax stamp on the seven of hearts as a variant used in the years 1877 - 1881, which would also correspond to the manufacturer's activity.

Above: Luditz pattern playing cards with German suit symbols by Georg Geiselreiter, Wiener Neustadt, 1881. 32 cards.

References

1. IPCS Pattern sheet #97►
2. Klaus Reisinger describes the development of the pattern in his articles in Talon No. 11/2002, available online
3. Google : map►
4. Also, Reisinger's upper limit of the viability of the pattern is now surpassed by the package of the manufacturer F.W. Maier from Proseč nad Nisou (Czech Republic) from 1931-2.
5. see note 2
6. Wolfgang Altfahrt: Kartenmaler in Wiener Neustadt in Talon Nr. 31/2022, available online
7. Ročenka 2024 Clubu sběratelů karetních her / Yearbook 2024 by Czech Club of playing card collectors
8. also available here►