Casino No.240
Piatnik-Ritter No.240 - Obchodní Tiskárny Casino No.240.
Piatnik-Ritter No.240
Above: Piatnik-Ritter No.240 playing cards, pre-1946, when Ritter were Nationalised and became a part of OTK (along with the other printing industries in Czechoslovakia). The ace of spades states: “Made in Czechoslovakia”. The logo on the ace of hearts states: “Ferd Piatnik & Sons Ritter & Comp Praha”.
The court cards from Ritter’s packs were imported into the UK after WWII by Bancroft & Partners Ltd with the brand name “Casino”. The joker was also carried over. (These should not be confused with a German firm who also used the name Casino.)
Obchodní Tiskárny Casino No.240
Above: OTK Casino No.240, c.1950s. The ace of hearts has the word “casino” and the ace of spades merely states: “foreign”. OTK continued to use Ritter's veiled joker, but later introduced a new version (shown below). See the Control Slip►
Obchodní Tiskárny Casino No.300
Above: OTK Casino No.300, imported into UK by Bancroft & Partners Ltd, c.1960s, with a new joker. See the Box► Another similar brand was named Casino No.250. Images courtesy Matt Probert.
Above: “Casino” brand for the 60th anniversary of Česká Zbrojovka motorcycle company which was established in 1919. The company logo appears on the back and two custom jokers with the legend “Let 60 1919-1979”.
The ace of spades has been re-drawn several times but basically remains the same►
REFERENCES
Lodge, Ken: Obchodni Tiskarny Karty Casino brands, E.P.C.S. Newsletter, June 2015. Donwload here►
By Matt Probert
Member since March 02, 2012
View ArticlesI have adored playing cards since before I was seven years old, and was brought up on packs of Waddington's No 1. As a child I was fascinated by the pictures of the court cards.
Over the next fifty years I was seduced by the artwork in Piatnik's packs and became a collector of playing cards.
Seeking more information about various unidentified packs I discovered the World of Playing Cards website and became an enthusiastic contributor researching and documenting different packs of cards.
I describe my self as a playing card archaeologist, using detective work to identify and date obscure packs of cards discovered in old houses, flea markets and car boot sales.
Leave a Reply
Recommended
Alcatraz: Rules and Regulations Playing Cards
Rules and regulations that guided prison life in America’s most notorious prison.
El Al Airlines
Pack designed by Jean David (1908-93) for El Al Airlines. The courts are named after Biblical characters.
Black Peter
Two Black Peter games by Willy Mayrl published by Ferd Piatnik & Söhne, 1950s.
Österreichisches Trachten-quartett
Österreichisches Trachten-quartett Nr.282 published by Ferd Piatnik & Söhne.
Black Peter
Black Peter card game designed by Willy Mayrl for Piatnik.
Crikey!
Crikey! Classic British Comics playing cards published by Bird Playing Cards, 2013.
Gulliver’s Travels
Gulliver’s Travels card game no.293 published by Piatnik, c.1950.
Baby Dolls
Baby Dolls pin-up deck designed by Willy Mayrl, published by Piatnik, 1957.
Tell Wilmoś
Facsimile of ‘Wilhelm Tell’ Hungarian deck by Salamon Antal, Keczkemét, 1860.
Qantas
Qantas Airways Limited is the flag carrier of Australia and is the world's third-oldest airline still in operation, having been founded in November 1920.
Schwarzer Peter mit Hundebildern
Humorous dog-themed Black Peter game illustrated by Willy Mayrl, c.1960.
Woman’s Hour
The Woman’s Hour playing cards published by David Westnedge, 1996.
Tyrolean Playing Cards
Facsimile of patriotic 1878 Tyrolean playing cards published by Piatnik in 1992.
Notgeld - Emergen¢y Money
Notgeld - Emergency Money - was in rare cases issued on playing cards.
Folklore No.169
Austrian Folklore deck first published by Piatnik in 1934.
Goal Fußball Spielkarten
“Goal” Fußball Spielkarten manufactured by Ferd. Piatnik & Söhne Wien, c1930s.
Mary Queen of Scots
Mary Queen of Scots and other Tudor period dignitaries, published by Piatnik, 1990.
Cosmopolitan № 2121 playing cards
“Cosmopolitan” № 2121 playing cards designed by Russian artist Valeri Mishin, 1996
Bourgeois Tarot by Piatnik 1987
Piatnik’s ‘Bourgeois Tarot’ in a version published in 1987 with nice quality images, especially the double-ended trump cards.
Piatnik No.97
Non-standard French-suited cards published by Ferd Piatnik & Sõhne, Vienna, c.1940s.
Austrian Wine
Skat deck for Austria’s excellent wines, Österreichischer Weinwirtschaftsfonds, c.1965
Dvouhlavé Hrací Karty
“Dvouhlavé Hrací Karty” (Czech Seasons playing cards) made by Obchodní Tiskárny, c.1980.
Churchill in WW2
Churchill ‘Walking with Destiny’ playing cards published by the Imperial War Museum.
New Jacob’s Bible Cards
New Jacob’s Bible Cards published by Lion Playing Cards, Tel Aviv
Georg Kapfler
Antique deck of old Bohemian playing cards of the German type manufactured by Georg Kapfler and dated 1611.
Vienna (ex-Lyon) pattern
‘Vienna pattern’ derived from archaic Lyon pattern by Ferd Piatnik & Söhne A.G., c.1926-1934.
Pack of Royals
Willie Rushton’s “Pack of Royals” featuring caricatures of the Royal Family, 1995.
Jacob’s Bible Cards
Jacob’s Bible Cards published by Lion Playing Cards Factory Ltd, Tel Aviv, since mid-1950s.
Piccadilly Patience
Piccadilly Patience by Piatnik, c.1955
Rococo Playing Cards
Piatnik’s Rococo style playing cards issued as “Rococo Patience”, “Luxus-Patience”, “Empire Patience”, “White Horse Patience”, “Patience-Whist No.140”, “Mini Patience” and “Lady Patience”
Kaiser Jubiläum
Kaiser Jubiläum Imperial playing cards made in Austria by Ferd Piatnik & Sons, Vienna.
Baroque No.2118
“Baroque” by Ferd Piatnik & Sons, Vienna, reflecting a bygone era of fashion.
48: Ferdinand Piatnik & Sons
Ferd. Piatnik produced a very large range of cards with many different standard and non-standard patterns. This is a survey of his standard English output.
Popular No.257
Piatnik’s “Popular Playing Cards” No.257
Salzburger Pattern
Salzburger pattern by Ferd. Piatnik & Söhne, Vienna
Die Neue ÖVP
Promotional deck for the Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP) printed by Piatnik, 1996.
Czech Patience Cards
Patience size playing cards published by Obchodni Tiskarny of Prague, under the brand “Casino”, with cartoon courts in the style of wood engravings.
Dudák
Dudák, meaning ‘Piper’, is a traditional Czech card game and this set has been specially illustrated for children.
Rococo No.2130
Piatnik: Rococo No.2130 playing cards designed by Prof. Kuno Hock, c.1975
Blue Playing Cards
“Blue Playing Cards” by Piatnik, 1960s, inspired by the Cubism art movement in which objects are analysed and reassembled in abstracted form