Rybářské karty
Fishing-themed playing cards with artwork by Jan Hora, Czech Republic, 2005.
This is a 32-card German-suited pack produced in 2005 by Akord and is devoted to fishing and thematic fishing motifs. The single-headed cards depict famous figures of Czech fishing (Štěpánek Netolicky, Jan Skála from Doubravka, Jakub Krčín from Jelčany and Sedlčan, Josef Šusta), historical methods of fishing with depictions of sports fishermen in action and mainly pictures of fish and fishing tools. The ace of acorns shows Štěpánek Netolicky with the phrase “Petrův Zdar” (Peter’s success) above. This refers to Saint Peter, the patron saint of fishermen, who is also depicted on the reverse of the cards. The artist is Jan Hora, and the designer Milan Matyásek. The pack has an accompanying legend in Czech which explains the subject of each card. See the box and legend►
Above: “Rybářské karty” fishing-themed playing cards produced by Akord, Czech Republic, 2005.
By Peter Burnett
United Kingdom • Member since July 27, 2022 • Contact
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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