Historical Characters
Double-ended deck with historical characters and jacks as jesters by Daveluy, c.1850.
Daveluy was a talented craftsman who made playing cards for all budgets. The quality and variation of his work was much appreciated. The “Middle Ages” was a popular theme, which inspired the clothing, background landscapes and attributes of the court cards in many packs and suited 19th century taste. The king of clubs (Jean 1er) has tents in the background scenery on which are pennants with the text ‘Limbourg’, ‘Woeringen’ and ‘Brabant’ , referring to Jean's victory in the battle of Woeringen (1288) when he was Duke of Brabant.
Daveluy pioneered a type of “painterly chromolithography” in which colours are applied in a more fluid, painterly manner, without black outlines, imitating hand-painted effects. This was anticipating the Art Nouveau style of applied art which flourished towards the end of the 19th century. The aces are decorated with plants and shells.
Above: double-ended deck with historical characters and jacks as jesters by Daveluy, c.1850. 52 cards, chromolithography, square corners. 54x83 mm. Back pattern of blue wavy lines and stars. Source gallica.bnf.fr
Q♣ Richilde holds a rose
J♣ Jester
Q♥ Marie de Bourgogne holding a falcon
J♥ Jester playing a tambourine
Q♠ Jeanne de Constantinople
J♠ Musician bowing
Q♦ Marguerite d’Autriche
J♦ Jester
Further References
Biebouw, Luc; Clays, Alex; Cremers, Filip; D'Hondt, Jan & Smet, Yvette: Daveluy, Brugge's Trots en Koninklijke Troef, Brussels Euro Joker Club, 2004.
Bibliothèque nationale de France: Jeu de cartes belge au portrait de fantaisie à deux têtes►
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
An Anonymous Belgian Transformation Pack
Anonymous Belgian transformation pack borrowing many images from earlier designs by Braun & Schneide...
Mademoiselle Lenormand
XIX century ‘Mlle Lenormand’ cartomancy deck by Daveluy, Bruges.
Historical playing cards by Joseph Fetscher
Historical playing cards by Joseph Fetscher, Munich, c.1820.
Questions et réponses
Questions and answers card game by Devaluy, Bruges, c.1880.
Historical Patience
Patience game with fantasy historical figures by Daveluy, Bruges, c.1875.
Cartes de Conversation
Question and answer game printed by Daveluy, Bruges. Each card contains a question (Q.) and an answe...
Cartes Universelles
Four Continents fantasy playing cards by Daveluy, Bruges, Belgium, 1860-1885.
Cartes Marbrées
A provincial variant of the French ‘Paris’ pattern produced by Daveluy c.1850-1895.
Domino Cards, c.1890
Domino Cards by Mesmaekers Frères, c.1890
Anon Spanish Cards c.1875
Spanish-suited playing cards made in Belgium by Mesmaekers Frères, c.1875.
Manuf’d for L.N. Mann
Standard English pattern manuf’d for L.N. Mann by Van Genechten, c.1890.
Carta Mundi
Carta Mundi was founded in Turnhout on 27 June 1970 by pooling the production and sales facilities o...
Pop Rocky
“Pop Rocky” miniature playing cards with double-ended caricatures of celebrities and pop stars, orig...
Daveluy
Daveluy produced card games between c.1840 and 1890. Many of his playing cards are in neo-medieval s...
Chromolithography
Colour lithography was invented in 1798 by a Bavarian actor and playwright named Alois Senefelder (1...
Mesmaekers & Moentack, c.1860
The Mesmaekers firm had been established in Turnhout in 1859 by the partnership of Gustaaf Mesmaeker...
A Todos Alumbra
40-card “A Todos Alumbra - Naypes Refinos” pack manufactured by Léonard Biermans, Turnhout.
Spanish Cards c.1920
Spanish-suited Playing Cards manufactured by Van Genechten, c.1920.
Belgian Playing Cards
Belgian cardmakers have been actively designing and exporting playing cards since the 14th century. ...
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...
Most Popular
Our top articles from the past 60 days
