Fantasy deck by Joseph Fetscher
Fantasy French-suited pack produced by Joseph Fetscher, Munich, c.1825.
Fine French-suited cards with full-length figures made in Germany by Joseph Fetscher in Munich, c.1825. The shield on the Jack of hearts reads “Joseph Fetscher in München”. The king of clubs has a lion supporting the arms of Bavaria.
Joseph Fetscher came from a playing-card making family and was granted a privilege to make playing cards in 1792. His workshop was located in Burggasse no.184 in Munich, where he produced a range of French-suited animal and scenic tarots, German-suited Bavarian pattern packs, Italian-suited Trappola packs, Vogelspiel (Cucu card game), miniature packs, historical packs, all carefully printed and beautifully coloured.
Above: 52-card deck with fantasy French-suited pattern produced by Joseph Fetscher, Munich, c.1825. Stencil-coloured woodcuts; the back has a pattern of dots. The six of hearts has a tax stamp used in Bayern from 1826 to c.1837. The text on the tax stamp is the name of a Bavarian region (Isarkreis) with a value in Kreuzer (8 Ker). Source gallica.bnf.fr / Bibliothèque nationale de France • Feine Französiche Karten►
Ferdinando Gumppenberg studied with Fetscher when he arrived from Italy to Munich in 1809.
The wrapper has the coat-of-arms of Bavaria supported by two lions. See the wrapper►
Further References
Peter Endebrock's playing-card pages: Tax Stamps from German States►
A very similar 32-card piquet version is in the British Museum: number 1896,0501.257►
By Simon Wintle
Spain • Member since February 01, 1996 • Contact
I am the founder of The World of Playing Cards (est. 1996), a website dedicated to the history, artistry and cultural significance of playing cards and tarot. Over the years I have researched various areas of the subject, acquired and traded collections and contributed as a committee member of the IPCS and graphics editor of The Playing-Card journal. Having lived in Chile, England, Wales, and now Spain, these experiences have shaped my work and passion for playing cards. Amongst my achievements is producing a limited-edition replica of a 17th-century English pack using woodblocks and stencils—a labour of love. Today, the World of Playing Cards is a global collaborative project, with my son Adam serving as the technical driving force behind its development. His innovative efforts have helped shape the site into the thriving hub it is today. You are warmly invited to become a contributor and share your enthusiasm.
Related Articles
Uncut Sheet by Johann Jobst Forster
A proof sheet containing twelve court cards of conventional French type.
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.
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.
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...
Bavarian pattern by Ernst Jegel
Bavarian pattern published by Ernst Jegel, Nuremberg, late 19th C.
Conrad Jegel proof sheets
Two uncut German-suited proof sheets by Conrad Jegel, Nuremberg.
Fantasy Bavarian pack
An early Bavarian-style deck by Johann Conrad Jegel, Nürnberg, Germany , c.1835.
Poker No. 140
Dondorf Poker-Karte No. 195, re-issued as Poker No. 140 for the "Argentina Compañia General de Naveg...
German playing cards
Card-playing rapidly became popular in medieval Bavaria and German printers were quick to supply the...
No.407 Naipe Español by F. X. Schmid
Naipe Español No.407 by F. X. Schmid, c.1980.
T O Weigel, Leipzig, 1885
Cards from a pack designed by Ludwig Burger, 1885
Most Popular
Our top articles from the past 60 days
