Bicycle Tattoo Golden Edition
Bicycle Tattoo Golden Edition created by Phoenix Playing Cards of Toronto, Canada, 2014.
Although there are several versions of a Bicycle branded Tattoo pack, this one is quite different from all the rest. Printed by the United States Playing Card Company and created via Kickstarter by Phoenix Playing Cards of Toronto, this Bicycle Tattoo Golden edition deck is their very first project. It was published in 5000 copies. See the box►
The cards are elegant and detailed, and the artwork has a luxurious gold finish. However, while the art is inspired by or elaborates on tattoo designs the finished designs bear little resemblance to traditional tattoos. In addition, the pip cards are arranged in a novel way -- all have 10 visible pips in identical locations, with only those depicting the specific card value highlighted in red or black. The pack includes two jokers and an advertising card.
By Peter Burnett
Member since July 27, 2022
I graduated in Russian and East European Studies from Birmingham University in 1969. It was as an undergraduate in Moscow in 1968 that I stumbled upon my first 3 packs of “unusual” playing cards which fired my curiosity and thence my life-long interest. I began researching and collecting cards in the early 1970s, since when I’ve acquired over 3,330 packs of non-standard cards, mainly from North America, UK and Western Europe, and of course from Russia and the former communist countries.
Following my retirement from the Bodleian Library in Dec. 2007 I took up a new role as Head of Library Development at the International Network for the Availability of Scientific Publications (INASP) to support library development in low-income countries. This work necessitated regular training visits to many sub-Saharan African countries and also further afield, to Vietnam, Nepal and Bangladesh – all of which provided rich opportunities to further expand my playing card collection.
Since 2019 I’ve been working part-time in the Bodleian Library where I’ve been cataloguing the bequest of the late Donald Welsh, founder of the English Playing Card Society.
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