Portuguese Type Cards made in Belgium
Portuguese Type Playing Cards made in Belgium, c.1878.
Later Portuguese Type - made in Belgium for export to Brazil |
||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Above: 15 cards from later Portuguese type pack with 'dragon' aces, made in Belgium by Léonard Biermans, Turnhout, c.1878. There is a Brazilian Real Fabrica insignia on the wrapper. 48 cards, size: 81 x 59 mm; lithographed. The dog has disappeared from the Maid of clubs but the Maid of coins holds a small chest as in earlier types. Click here to see more. | ||||
Cartas Portuguezas N°2
Above: Portuguezas N°2, Léonard Biermans, 1878, National Playing Card Museum, Turnhout.
Above: modern partly-coloured reprint of the obsolete Portuguese pattern, courtesy the National Playing Card Museum, Turnhout.
By Simon Wintle
Spain • Member since February 01, 1996 • Contact
I am the founder of The World of Playing Cards (est. 1996), a website dedicated to the history, artistry and cultural significance of playing cards and tarot. Over the years I have researched various areas of the subject, acquired and traded collections and contributed as a committee member of the IPCS and graphics editor of The Playing-Card journal. Having lived in Chile, England, Wales, and now Spain, these experiences have shaped my work and passion for playing cards. Amongst my achievements is producing a limited-edition replica of a 17th-century English pack using woodblocks and stencils—a labour of love. Today, the World of Playing Cards is a global collaborative project, with my son Adam serving as the technical driving force behind its development. His innovative efforts have helped shape the site into the thriving hub it is today. You are warmly invited to become a contributor and share your enthusiasm.
Related Articles
Portuguese pattern by Real Fábrica
Later Portuguese pattern by Impressão Règia, Real Fábrica de Lisboa.
Early German playing cards
Some early examples of popular German playing cards from the XV and XVI centuries.
Portuguese-suited cards
Portuguese-suited cards with dragon aces, made in Italy, 1613.
Dubois
Dubois card makers from Liège in the Walloon Region of Belgium.
Hermanos Solesio
“Money Bag” pattern by Hermanos Solesi, late 18th c.
Brepols Genoese pattern
“Cartes Françaises” and Genoese pattern by Brepols.
Portuguese pattern
19th century Portuguese pattern, re-printed from original woodblocks.
Old Bavarian pattern
Uncut sheets of playing cards of the Old Bavarian pattern by Michael Schatzberger, Passau, c.1780.
Malta
The so-called ‘Dragon Cards’, with winged monsters on the four Aces, are an enigmatic aspect of earl...
21: Belgian Makers: Brepols and Biermans
Brepols started making playing cards in 1826, although he had been in the printing trade since 1800....
Lyon Pattern type iii
This pattern was used in various parts of eastern France but was ultimately replaced by the official...
A Todos Alumbra
40-card “A Todos Alumbra - Naypes Refinos” pack manufactured by Léonard Biermans, Turnhout.
Paris Pattern
The Paris pattern was established as such around the middle of the seventeenth century (based, perha...
Portuguese Type Playing Cards made in Belgium
Portuguese type pack with ‘dragon’ aces made in Belgium by Mesmaekers Frères, Turnhout, c.1875-1900....
Naypes Finos made in Belgium
Belgian manufacturers were competing against Spanish makers. Features of the traditional Spanish des...
Early Spanish/Portuguese type
Fragment of a sheet of archaic Spanish-suited 'Dragon' playing cards found during restoration of a h...
Portuguese Type Playing Cards c.1860
10 cards from a pack of later Portuguese ‘Dragon’ type cards from c.1860, with the Maid of batons ab...
Portuguese Playing Cards
The Real Fábrica de Cartas de Jogar was founded in 1769, by Royal Charter of King José, under the ma...
16th century cards discovered in Peru
Fragments of playing cards and 2 dice were unearthed in a 16th century rubbish tip adjace...
Tensho Mekuri - Japan
Tensho Mekuri cards hand-made by Patricia Kirk, 2003.
Most Popular
Our top articles from the past 60 days
