Lapin Brothers
Reprint of Lapin’s Historical Belarusian playing cards.
Belarusian Lapin’s playing cards
Grodno (or Hrodna) is a city famous for its printing traditions. In early 1770s Antoni Tyzenhaus, who was its warden, took possession of a publishing house considered as one of the best letter foundries in the former Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth territory.
In the mid-19th century there began to appear enterprises with an uncommon name - typolithographies, whose main business was to print lithographs. In 1879 the members of a wealthy lower middle class family, the Lapins, founded the first private typolithography. The owner’s name was Solomon Lapin. The establishment mainly printed cigarette labels, coloured advertisements and others.
In 1923 brothers Alexander and Abraham Lapin expanded their business and began to produce playing cards, which allowed them to rename their business as “First State Playing Card Factory”. The cards were of high quality and were used for playing such games as skat, bridge, poker and whist. The factory printed folk, Venitian and Rhenish cards. A unique deck depicting real kings was designed there as well, in which the kings represent real historical characters of Polish and Belarusian heritage - John Sobieski, Casimir III the Great, Sigismund II Augustus and Stephen Bathory.
In the autumn of 1939 the Lapin brothers’ factory was nationalized and its owners died in Grodno’s ghetto. The typography was repurposed for agitational materials instead. Until the early 1950s the factory in Grodno was the only colour printing enterprise in Soviet Belarus. It existed until 1993.
Above & right: Lapin’s playing cards with historical personages on the four kings, published by “А4”, printed by Onlineprint (Minsk), 2017. Size = 56х88 mm, 36 cards + 2 Jokers + booklet in box.
In 2017 the Yankouski family together with “A4” creative group took up the restoration of the Lapins’ playing cards. They were drawn by hand and restored based on the original deck fragments. On the pack one can see design features borrowed directly from the Lapins’ factory production: the logo, vignette and lettering.
The deck “with kings” shown here is unique because it was originally designed and printed only in Grodno.
By Valentin Krasavin (Валентин Красавин)
Member since January 05, 2014
Trending Articles
Popular articles from the past 28 days
Related Articles
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 Jack of Hearts
A limited edition art print of the Jack of Hearts 1984 woodblock joker.
Woodblock and Stencil Joker
A limited edition art print of the 1984 woodblock joker.
Eclipse Comic playing cards (reproduction)
Eclipse Comic playing cards is a reproduction of the first transformation pack printed in the USA in...
Kings of India playing cards
Kings of India playing cards depicting the four greatest dynasties of India.
Moorish Deck
Review of “Trzes’ Moorish Deck” facsimile published by Ulrich Kaltenborn, Berlin, 2023.
Royal Hawaiian playing cards
Royal Hawaiian playing cards published by the Royal Hawaiian Playing Card Company, Honolulu.
Cards on Cards (E.H. Locker)
Artist Edward Locker’s view of London life in 1799, using every card in the pack as part of the pict...
Instructive and Educational Playing Cards
Playing cards with an educational and instructive purpose first trended in mid-17th century France, ...
Baraja Napoleónica
Re-edition of a French-suited Spanish pack from the Napoleonic era, with designs by J. Carrafa.
Jeanne l’Hachette
Jeanne l’Hachette reprint of 19th century transformation deck, Denmark, 1976.
Naipes Heraclio Fournier 130th Anniversary
Baraja conmemorativa del 130 aniversario de naipes Heraclio Fournier (1868-1998) Spain, 1998.
New Orleans and Gulf souvenir
New Orleans and Gulf souvenir playing cards from c1900 reprinted for the 52 Plus Joker Convention in...
Calliope: a Renaissance band
Facsimile of cards attributed to Hans Schäufelein (c. 1480-1540) produced by ‘Calliope’, a New York ...
La-Tee-Da transformation playing cards
Facsimile edition of ‘La-Tee-Da’ transformation playing cards, originally made in 1865 by Dean & Son...
Antoine Dieudonné c.1850
Reproduction of a pack by Antoine Dieudonné, Grevenmacher, Luxembourg, c1850.
Rois de France
Figures from French history restyled for a younger audience published by Quelle Histoire, 2015.
The British Royal visit to India playing cards
printed in Spain for British India in 1911.
Napoleonské karty
“Napoleonské karty” from the Czech Republic portraying monarchs and emperors.
Carte Méthodique
Reproduction of a French pack by François Silvestre intended to teach heraldry, produced in Paris in...
Spielkarten in Bromsilber-Photographie
“Spielkarten in Bromsilber-Photographie” facsimile edition by Vito Arienti of Edizioni del Solleone,...
Baraja El Quijote
Baraja El Quijote, facsimile of original deck designed by E. Pastor, reprinted by Naipes Heraclio Fo...
Histoire de France
“Histoire de France” facsimile of French historical deck of 1820.
Grover Cleveland Presidential Campaign of 1888
Grover Cleveland Presidential Campaign playing cards of 1888, USA, [reprint 1980].
Ye Witches’ Fortune Cards
Review of the 2019 edition Ye Witches Fortune Cards No 62
Belarus Souvenir Cards
Souvenir cards, Belarus, 1993
Kings and Queens of Portugal
Cameo portraits of Portuguese royalty from 1128 to 1910.
Fake ‘Four Seasons’ pattern
More than just a copy, this is a fake!
Algarve playing cards
Kings and Queens of Portugal between 1185 - 1279. by V. de J.J. Nunes , Lisbon, Portugal, 1977.
Dronning Margrethe II
Elegant, elongated cards designed by Queen Margrethe II of Denmark.
Dutch costume playing cards from an unknown maker
Another pack of Dutch costume playing cards c.1880.
A. Dougherty’s Triplicate Recreation
A recreated of the original 1876, No. 18, Triplicate deck by A. Dougherty by Michael Scott in 2014. ...
Dutch costume playing cards
Dutch costume playing cards made for the Dutch market in the second half of the 19th century.
Royal Cards Reign of Queen Anne
“Royal Cards Reign of Queen Anne” cover historical events, both honourable and treacherous, during t...
La Sibylle des Salons
La Sibylle des Salons facsimile of 19th century deck published by J M Simon, 1979.
William Tell
Facsimile of Swiss William Tell deck from c.1870 published by Lo Scarabeo.
“Deck with French suits”
A facsimile of an early 19th century French-suited deck from the collection of F.X. Schmid.
Le Destin Antique
Le Jeu du Destin Antique, originally published by Grimaud in XIX c., republished many times since......
Dynastie Royale de Belgique
Dynastie Royale de Belgique by Mesmaekers, 1934.
Jeu Mythologique
“Jeu Mythologique” facsimile 18th century pack by J M Simon, 1983.
Caleb Bartlett
Caleb Bartlett patriotic deck (reproduction), around 1835-40.
Heraldic playing cards
Reproduction of Richard Blome’s Heraldic playing cards, 1684, presented to lady guests at WCMPC Summ...