Bavarian Military Cards
The King of Acorns is supposed to represent Prince Otto; the King of Leaves is Maximilian II; the King of Bells is Ludwig II; the King of Hearts is Ludwig I wearing a general's uniform.
Bayerische Militärkarte / Bavarian Military Cards
manufactured by successors of Johann Conrad Jegel, Nürnberg
The bright images on these finely engraved patriotic playing cards with a military theme are coloured with stencils. The uniforms are coloured in mainly green and blue, and the Kings are not actually wearing their crowns. The King of Acorns is supposed to represent Crown Prince Otto I; the King of Leaves is Maximilian II; the King of Bells is Ludwig II; the King of Hearts is Ludwig I wearing a general's uniform. The court cards are all male, but some of the numeral cards depict women as well as military objects. This appears to be a later edition produced after 1879 by Johann Wilhelm Sass, who succeeded J C Jegel in 1857.




Above: German-suited "Bayerische Militärkarte" (Bavarian Military Cards) manufactured by successors of Johann Conrad Jegel, 36 cards, single-ended, stencil coloured, 10.4 x 5.8 cm. The Two of Hearts has a tax stamp with a double-headed eagle and the inscription "Deutsches Reich - Dreissig Pf. No.52". The back is a cross-grid pattern. Images courtesy Rod Starling.
REFERENCES
"Geschichte Auf Spielkarten 1789-1871", Deutsches Spielkartenmuseum, Leinfelden-Echterdingen, 1987
All images on this page are from the collection of Rod Starling, author of "The Art and Pleasures of Playing Cards".
• See also: Historical Deck published by Johann Conrad Jegel.

By Rod Starling
Member since January 09, 2013
Rod Starling is one of the founding members of the 52 Plus Joker card collectors club. He has written many articles for the club's quarterly newsletter, Clear the Decks. His collection still encompasses both foreign and American decks. Rod has also authored a book titled The Art and Pleasures of Playing Cards.
Trending Articles
Popular articles from the past 28 days
Related Articles

Woodblock and Stencil Jack of Clubs
A limited edition art print of the Jack of Clubs 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.

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

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.

Storia del Fascismo
Published by Il Meneghello, this pack provides a visual history of Fascism in Italy between 1919 and...

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.

Know your deplorables
Photographs of political and media figures associated with the Presidency of Donald Trump (2017-2021...

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

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.

Buffalo soldiers
“Buffalo soldiers” playing cards commemorating African American military men who helped change the f...

Schweden Spielkarten
54 different souvenir views of famous people and places in Sweden.

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

Political Players
Caricatures by Garth Stackhouse of American politicians involved in the 1996 presidential campaign.

Napoleone playing cards
Long, narrow cards designed by Osvaldo Menegazzi, featuring Napoleon, Josephine and various soldiers...

Burgdorf Abschreckhärtetechnik
Promotional pack for a German steel hardening business, with designs by Costante Costantini.

Révolution 1789-1989
Révolution 1789-1989, celebrating the bicentenary of the French revolution, France, 1989

Early German playing cards
Some early examples of popular German playing cards from the XV and XVI centuries.

Spanish Political pack
Satirical playing cards manufactured by Francar y Cía depicting political situation, Barcelona, 1872...

Carte da gioco anticomuniste del Comitato civico
Anti-Communist propaganda pack with satirical designs by Benito Jacovitti.

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

The Presidents playing cards
The Presidents playing cards first published by Arcturus LLC in 2007, reprinted in 2009.

The President’s deck
The President’s deck, USA, 1972

U.S. Presidents playing cards
U.S. Presidents Bicycle playing cards designed by Johnny Whaam, USA, 2015

Presidential playing cards
Presidential playing cards with portraits from Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery, USA.

Presidents of the United States
‘Presidents of the United States’ playing cards published by PostCardusa of Florida after 2009.

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...

WW2 German Propaganda Playing Cards
showing satirical portraits of Allied leaders and politicians

Wolfgang Dorn Werbe
Designs by Jürgen Pankarz for the 20th anniversary of the Wolfgang Dorn advertising agency, Cologne....

Bilder zum Tarot
Detailed pen and ink drawings of the major arcana by the German artist Helmut Wonschick.

Eisbergfreistadt Panoramische Spielkarte 1923
‘Iceberg Free State 1923’ fantasy playing cards with a cautionary moral lesson, Germany, 2006.

Das Tübinger Skatspiel
Pack devised by Volker Scheub depicting characters associated with the city of Tübingen.

Theatre of Pain / Teatr Boli
Theatre of Pain / Teatr boli playing cards depicting politicians and leaders in the Caucasus territo...

Playing cards by António
Caricatures by António Moreira Antunes of Portuguese politicians from the 1980s, with non-standard s...

CCCP playing cards
Soviet and other Communist celebrities depicted on every card, designed by Vladislav Pankevitch.