The card-makers of Turnhout were prolific in their output and inveterate copiers.
Brepols started making playing cards in 1826, although he had been in the printing trade since 1800. In 1833 the firm was called Brepols & Dierckx (the former's son-in-law). Biermans (1875-1970) was a relatively late arrival on the Turnhout playing card scene.
Abbey Playing Cards made in Belgium by La Turnhoutoise, c.1950s.
Promotional deck designed by Ray Goossens for the Boerenbond farmers’ union, c.1968
“Cartes Françaises” and Genoese pattern by Brepols.
Carta Mundi was founded in Turnhout on 27 June 1970 by pooling the production and sales facilities of the three surviving companies: Brepols, Van Genechten and Leonard Biermans.
Brepols Dutch Pattern for Van Perlstein distillery, c.1960
Artistic playing cards with abstract designs by Renée Sturbelle, first published by Brepols S.A., Turnhout, 1947, possibly reprinted in c.1960. The designs are hand-drawn ink drawings coloured red, blue and black. 52 cards + Joker.
A. Van Genechten ran a flourishing business, supplying various kinds of cards both inside the country and abroad including England, Spain, France, Denmark, South-East Asia, China and Japan
In 1919 Brepols commemorated the victories of World War I with two new packs featuring portraits of Allied leaders on the court cards and famous battle scenes on the Aces.
