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.
Patience size playing cards published by Obchodni Tiskarny of Prague (formerly Piatnik/Ritter & Co) under the brand “Casino”, with cartoon courts by an unknown artist in the style of wood engravings. The court figures are said to depict characters from the popular Czechoslovakian film Císařův pekař a pekařův císa (”The Emperor's Baker”) which was released in 1952 with Jan Werich as both the Emperor and the Baker. “Casino” was the brand-name in Britain for OTK cards after the war.

Above: Patience playing cards No.140 published by Obchodni Tiskarny (formerly Piatnik/Ritter & Co) of Prague, in various editions. Images courtesy Rex Pitts / Ken Lodge.

Above: Patience playing cards No.140, with booklet and control slip, published by Obchodni Tiskarny, c.1960, without borders. Below: an example in the U.K. import tax wrapper, c.1955.


By Rex Pitts (1940-2021)
Member since January 30, 2009
Rex's main interest was in card games, because, he said, they were cheap and easy to get hold of in his early days of collecting. He is well known for his extensive knowledge of Pepys games and his book is on the bookshelves of many.
His other interest was non-standard playing cards. He also had collections of sheet music, music CDs, models of London buses, London Transport timetables and maps and other objects that intrigued him.
Rex had a chequered career at school. He was expelled twice, on one occasion for smoking! Despite this he trained as a radio engineer and worked for the BBC in the World Service.
Later he moved into sales and worked for a firm that made all kinds of packaging, a job he enjoyed until his retirement. He became an expert on boxes and would always investigate those that held his cards. He could always recognize a box made for Pepys, which were the same as those of Alf Cooke’s Universal Playing Card Company, who printed the card games. This interest changed into an ability to make and mend boxes, which he did with great dexterity. He loved this kind of handicraft work.
His dexterity of hand and eye soon led to his making card games of his own design. He spent hours and hours carefully cutting them out and colouring them by hand.
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 Queen of Clubs
A limited edition art print of the Queen of Clubs 1984 woodblock joker.

Woodblock and Stencil Joker
A limited edition art print of the 1984 woodblock joker.

From Empire to Commonwealth
Flags, locations and admission dates of 52 Commonwealth countries.

House of Tudor
Randy Butterfield's House of Tudor playing cards feature detailed art in a high-quality collectible ...

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End
Pack featuring six images from the Disney film of the same name, on cards made for Eastern Europe.

Shrek the Third playing cards
Characters from the 2007 film Shrek the Third, a DreamWorks Animation production.

75: Early American cards
An overview of some of the early cards made in the United States.

Winnie the Pooh Rummy
Disney’s Winnie the Pooh and friends on a pack made for Eastern Europe.

The Pack of Positivity
Katie Abey’s rainbow-coloured designs using crazy animals to convey motivating phrases.

On-line offsite data backup
On-line offsite data backup publicity playing cards produced by The Bunker, United Kingdom, c. 2004....

The Famous Dinosaurs Playing Cards
54 different dinosaurs, both large and small, illustrated by Cecilia Fitzsimons.

Commemorative Olympic Playing Cards
Commemorative Olympic Playing Cards produced by Waddingtons exclusively for Stanley Gibbons Antiquar...

Dorset Dialect Trails
‘Dorset Dialect Trails’ playing cards, United Kingdom, 2015.

Clamcleats playing cards
Clamcleats playing cards for sailors designed by Celia Allison, New Zealand, 1986.

Around the world in 54 cards
“Around the world in 54 cards” hand-coloured transformation pack produced by Peter Wood, United King...

The Journey
‘The Journey’ limited edition playing cards produced by Peter Wood, UK, 2008.

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
Characters and scenes from the Disney film of the same name, on a pack made for Eastern Europe.

Pretty Frills
‘Pretty Frills’ playing cards promoting curtain and blind accessories.

The Origin of Patience Games in English
Jessel’s Bibliography of works in English on Playing Cards and Gaming describes “The first book on P...

The Broons and Oor Wullie playing cards
Characters from The Broons and Oor Wullie comic strips on their 75th anniversary.

Disney Princess
Featuring Disney Princesses and Enchanting Tales in two sizes of pack made for Eastern Europe.

Mickey Mouse Rummy
Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and other Disney characters on a pack made for Eastern Europe.

History of London illustrated playing cards
A catalogue in 54 cards of some of the treasures held within the Museum of London collections.

Ladbroke Sporting Casino
Ladbroke Sporting Casino caricature cartoon playing cards, U.K, c.2006.

Star Wars: a New Hope
‘Star Wars: a New Hope’ playing cards to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the film Star Wars, USA, ...

The Evolution of Bezique boxed sets, 1869 to 1990
The first company to register Bezique materials with Stationers’ Hall was Josh Reynolds & Son in Sep...

I Tarocchi del Cinema (di Sesar)
A set of Tarot trumps on the subject of the cinema, with designs by Sergio Sarri.

Goodall 1915-1916 Sample Book
Complete contents of a sample book by Goodall & Sons

Goodall 1916 Rockleigh Sample Book
Complete contents of a sample book by Goodall

Goodall 1879-1880 Sample Book
Complete contents of a sample book by Goodall & Sons

De La Rue 1932-1933 Sample Book of Advertising cards
Complete contents of a sample book of advertising cards by De La Rue

Disney Villains Tarot Deck
The Disney Villains tarot deck by Insight Editions emphasises iconic villains, merging traditional t...

A Gardener’s Labyrinth
Photographs of flowers, herbs and vegetables by leading photographer Tessa Traeger.

Card Game Items and contemporary advertisements
It is often difficult to identify the origin, manufacturer and date of a card game boxed set and oth...

Jonathan Hocus Pocus
Two sets of conjuring cards published by G. Martin, 6 Great St Thomas Apostle, London, early 19th ce...

Henley-on-Thames playing cards
Calendar events and visitor attractions to be found in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire.

Motoveteráni
‘Motoveteráni’ playing cards featuring the photographs of Robert Sobčák, Czech Republic,

De La Rue Pocket Guides
The 19th Century saw the production, by all of the major companies, of pocket guides or “mini-books”...

National Railway Museum
National Railway Museum with drawings by Stuart Black, United Kingdom, 1993.

Will’s Cigarettes and Auction Bridge
In 1926 Will’s issued a set of 25 cigarette cards on Auction Bridge, presenting a range of hands ill...

The Club Series by G. Bell & Sons
George Bell & Sons produced ‘The Club Series’ of books each specialising in one or more of the popul...

Hoyle v Foster: whose name should we remember?
Hoyle’s name is associated with the rules by which many games are played, particularly card games B...