Tarock Cards by Antonín Kratochvíl

One of the leading Prague card manufacturers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries was Antonín Kratochvíl (1842–1915). In 1879, he took over the management of the famous, well-established Prague firm Severa, which had been run in its final years (1875–1879) by Marie Severová, the widow of cardmaker Wenzel Sever. Kratochvíl then labeled his products “M. Severa, nasledník / W. Sewera’s Nachfolger” and listed the production address as Týnská St. 5 (German: Teingasse 5/I), where the Sever family’s workshop had also been located. Over time, before 1900, he moved his company to the address U Štupartů (German: Stupart). Antonín Kratochvíl’s workshop ceased operations in 1910, as announced in a newspaper advertisement dated January 15, 1910. The original firm was taken over by Ferd. Piatnik & Söhne.

Tarock cards were a relatively common product among card manufacturers in 19th-century Austria-Hungary. The most common playing material was the Austrian Tarock, also known as Industrie und Glück, which has survived in Central Europe to the present day. From the perspective of the average user, the format and appearance of the cards are consistent; from the perspective of different manufacturers, the most significant variation lies primarily in the company logo, which is always placed on the Jack of Diamonds and the Jack of Clubs, and historically also on the Ace of Hearts. During development, changes were made to the genre-specific scenes, but these are easily interchangeable during normal gameplay.

One possible way to standardize the card design was the secondary use of printing plates from other manufacturers. This was a common solution at the time. Antonín Kratochvíl’s deck is a prime example of this.

The set of Genre scenes corresponds to the definition of Austrian Tarock Type B according to IPCS standards; Klaus Reisinger refers to this solution as Scheme V. A minor anomaly is the blue colour of the “Industrie und Glück” inscription on tarock II. It is usually yellow or ochre. The blue design is not unique to Kratochvíl; it appears on Austrian Tarock Type B decks produced around 1885. The tax stamp on the Ace of Hearts was used in Austria-Hungary between 1882 and 1899. This is also reflected in the manufacturer’s address, which is written in German here. The reverse side of the cards in the Vienna Lightning (ger. wienerblitz, a later developmental phase) design was popular at the time and is still in use today.

Above: Tarock Cards designed by Josef Neumayer and manufactured by Antonín Kratochvíl, Prague, 1899.

Closer inspection reveals that Kratochvíl used a secondary, older die created by engraver Josef Neumayer for his 68 x 126 mm cards. The design can be clearly identified by the preserved JN monogram on the buckle of the man’s belt in tarock card No. V. Neumayer’s monogram has been preserved in this location in many decks. The specific identification of the die is possible primarily from the date 1884 on tarock card No. II. Right at the edge, in the left corner of the image, there is also another JN signature, which is very illegible in Kratochvíl’s version.

In his book “Tarocke. Kulturgeschichte auf Kartenbildern” Klaus Reisinger identifies the company Ludwig Jäger in Vienna as the original commissioner of the matrix’s production. The same printing plates (or their transfers) were also used by the Viennese companies Ferd. Piatnik & Sons and Josef Glanz too.

Reisinger also presents other versions of Kratochvíl’s cards featuring these engravings—with different borders, set apart from the depicted motifs themselves. This modified version dates to the end of his workshop’s activity. The size of the image field and the appearance of the border frame typically followed the fashion trends of the time. The version with triple, narrow border lines (shown above) is, of course, older.

Sources and Acknowledgments

Klaus Reisinger : Tarocke. Kulturgeschichte auf Kartenbildern

Petr Kruml : “Výrobce karet Antonín Kratochvíl” (Card Maker Antonín Kratochvíl) in the 2020 Yearbook of the Card Game Collectors’ Club (Club sběratelů karetních her).

This article would not have been possible without the helpful assistance of Mr. Wolfgang Altfart and the use of his text “Makers of Playing Cards in Prague (Bohemia) From the 16th Century to 1918”.

IPCS : Austrian Tarock Type B ►

Open Call

Other Austrian Tarock cards from Antonín Kratochvíl’s workshop are also known, featuring different schemes of genre scenes (Scheme III and Scheme V/VI according to Reisinger). Over time, Kratochvíl updated the borders and company inscriptions (which he lists separately in the Czech and German versions).

I am attempting to map the full extent of the surviving Kratochvíl Tarock cards. I kindly ask readers for any additional information on this topic that they would like to share with me.