German playing cards
Card-playing rapidly became popular in medieval Bavaria and German printers were quick to supply the goods.
Throughout their long history the quantity and quality of German cards has been outstanding. Card playing caught on rapidly in medieval Bavaria and German printers were quick to respond to the demand with a prodigious range of output which now can be regarded as an early example of popular art. German packs were produced with a variety of suit symbols and great freedom of design. learn more →
Suits were divided into two colors, green and red. The pips of one green suit were acorns, and of the other, leaves. The red suits were, and still are, hearts of the conventional shape and hawk bells. Germans have varied their pips perhaps more than any other people.
Probably spreading northwards across the Alps, card playing reached Basle in 1377. In the same year the Dominican monk Johannes von Rheinfelden from Basle wrote an allegory on the pack of cards. Cards are mentioned in the archives of Nuremberg between the years 1380 and 1384. From 1392 there are many references to playing cards in the guild books and registers of German towns. The names of both card-makers and card-painters are recorded, many of whom were women. To begin with most cards were made in the south in cities such as Augsburg, Munich, Nuremberg and Ulm. During the second half of the fifteenth century a succession of masterly German engravers practised their art and engraved playing cards reached a zenith. Many of these packs have survived as precious objets d'art - see more →. During the sixteenth century wood-block playing cards evolved so that miniature burlesque scenes decorated the lower half of each card.
Playing cards in Germany first appeared with several different archaic suit systems involving a variety of everyday objects including flowers, animals, hunting equipment or coats of arms. Gradually standardisation occurred and today the German national suit marks are: Hearts (Herzen), Bells (Schellen), Leaves (Laub) and Acorns (Eicheln). In a true German pack a second Knave is substituted for the Queen, the two Knaves being called Obermann and Untermann (abbreviated into Ober and Unter), and the 2 (Daus) takes the place of the Ace.
It was not until the late 17th century that packs with French suits were made and during the eighteenth century German card-makers excelled with their imaginative and artistic approach to card design. The existence of several German states and their varying fortunes is reflected in the different patterns still used in these areas today. But just as these states have become engulfed in the whole, so the cards are doing the same thing and regional differences are disappearing. German-suited cards are now in the minority, and if standard English cards are not used, then the Berliner or North German pattern is the most prevalent.
By Simon Wintle
Member since February 01, 1996
Founder and editor of the World of Playing Cards since 1996. He is a former committee member of the IPCS and was graphics editor of The Playing-Card journal for many years. He has lived at various times in Chile, England and Wales and is currently living in Extremadura, Spain. Simon's first limited edition pack of playing cards was a replica of a seventeenth century traditional English pack, which he produced from woodblocks and stencils.
Related Articles
Woodblock and Stencil Jack of Clubs
A limited edition art print of the Jack of Clubs 1984 woodblock joker.
Woodblock and Stencil Joker
A limited edition art print of the 1984 woodblock joker.
Woodblock and Stencil Jack of Hearts
A limited edition art print of the Jack of Hearts 1984 woodblock joker.
Woodblock and Stencil King of Diamonds
A limited edition art print of the King of Diamonds 1984 woodblock joker.
Hansaplast®
Advertising pack for Hansaplast, with comic courts sporting sticking plasters.
Wedding of Krechinsky • Свадьба Кречинского
A pack of cards depicting characters from the famous play "The Wedding of Krechinsky" by Sukhovo-Kob...
Freimaurer Spielkarten / Masonic playing cards
Masonic playing cards created by Ivan Wojnikow, 2004.
Orientierungslauf Skat
Humorous designs by Helmut Härtelt on the subject of orienteering.
Borna Skat
Publicity pack for the Saxon town of Borna, with designs by Andreas Wachter.
Postgeschichte
A celebration of different postal systems in Germany from 1630 to 1850, with designs by Volker Hartm...
Kings and Queens of Brazil & Portugal
Historical playing cards by C. L. Wüst depicting monarchs of Brazil and Portugal.
Mythological tarot by Michael Schatzberger
Mythological tarot by Michael Schatzberger, Passau, Bavaria, early 19th century.
Ansbach pattern by Emil Doll
Later Ansbach or Nürnberg pattern by Emil Doll, Neustadt.
Cartomancy deck by Johann Ernst Backofen
German-suited Cartomancy deck published by Johann Ernst Backofen, Nürnberg.
Trappola pack by Joseph Fetscher
Trappola pack published by Joseph Fetscher, Graz, 1739.
Animal Tarot by Joseph Fetscher
French-suited Natural History Tarot deck by Joseph Fetscher, Munich, c.1820.
Heathen Wars
German-suited ‘Heathen War’ playing cards published by Joseph Fetscher, Munich, c.1820.
Mythological and Allegorical tarot
Mythological and Allegorical tarot produced by Peter Paul Fetscher junior, Munich.
Fantasy deck by Joseph Fetscher
Fantasy French-suited pack produced by Joseph Fetscher, Munich, c.1825.
Miniature playing cards by Joseph Fetscher
Uncut sheet of miniature Bavarian playing cards by Joseph Fetscher.
Vogelspiel
Vogelspiel, a German card game known as the “cuckoo game” also known as “Gnau”.
Bavaria pattern
Classic German-suited Bavarian pattern by Joseph Fetscher, Munich, early 19th century.
Animal Tarot by Andreas Benedict Göbl
French-suited Animal Tarot deck produced by Andreas Benedict Göbl, Munich.
Standard French-suited Bavarian deck by Göbl
French-suited Bavarian deck by Andreas Benedict Göbl, late 18th c.
Historical playing cards by Joseph Fetscher
Historical playing cards by Joseph Fetscher, Munich, c.1820.
Illustrated piquet cards
Bavarian piquet cards with oriental illustrations produced by Andreas Benedict Göbl, Munich, late 18...
Costumes of Turkey Tarot
‘National Costumes of Turkey’ tarot by Industrie Comptoir, Leipzig, c.1800-1825.
Natural History Tarot
Natural History Tarot published by G M, Germany, early 19th C.
Æsop’s Fables tarot
French-suited Æsop’s fables tarot produced by Leipzig Industrie Comptoir, c.1800-1825.
Das Nassauische Kartenspiel
Pack conceived by Berthold Conradi, commemorating the 700th anniversary of the granting of town righ...
Jägerkarte Nr.465
Dondorf Jägerkarte Nr. 465 playing cards dedicated to the theme of hunting, c.1930.
Englische Karten nr.190
Dondorf Nr.190“Englische Karten”, 1867-1895.
Pomeranian Tarot
A Pomeranian Tarot deck with etchings by Georg Pommer published by Conrad Jegel, 1852.
Möbel-Spiel
Publicity pack for the East German furniture industry, with designs by Werner-Hans Schlegel.
Hand-painted and Silk-inlaid playing cards
Complete pack of 36 hand-painted and silk-inlaid playing cards with French suits made in Germany.
Postillion Schafkopf
Postillion Schafkopf dedicated to the history of the German postal service.
Moorish Deck
Review of “Trzes’ Moorish Deck” facsimile published by Ulrich Kaltenborn, Berlin, 2023.
Schweden Spielkarten
54 different souvenir views of famous people and places in Sweden.
Burgdorf Abschreckhärtetechnik
Promotional pack for a German steel hardening business, with designs by Costante Costantini.
Early German playing cards
Some early examples of popular German playing cards from the XV and XVI centuries.
South American Costumes
Costumes of people of Brazil, Peru and Mexico, with views of Rio de Janeiro on the aces.
Vues et Caractères Suisses No.228
A Swiss souvenir pack by Dondorf
Spielkarten für Sammler
Cards on cards in celebration of playing-card collector Franz Braun’s 75th birthday.
Cards on Cards (E.H. Locker)
Artist Edward Locker’s view of London life in 1799, using every card in the pack as part of the pict...