The World of Playing Cards Logo

The English Playing Card Society

EPCS Logo

Promoting research into English card history since 1984. Members receive the EPCS magazine three times a year.

Join from £10/year

F.A. Lattmann

Published November 11, 2012 Updated July 29, 2022

After the family printing business had been handed down for several generations, in 1794 Ernst Wilhelm Gottlieb Kircher founded a playing card factory in Goslar am Harz

GermanyLattmann
Lattmann Playing Card factory in Goslar F.A.Lattmann logo

Friedrich Adolf Lattmann

After the family printing business had been handed down for several generations, in 1794 Ernst Wilhelm Gottlieb Kircher founded a playing card factory in Goslar am Harz but the factory was closed by the Prussians. Later Lauenstein was granted permission to open a factory in Goslar when it came back to the Kingdom of Hannover. When Lauenstein died his son-in-law and Lattmann wanted to continue, and after some quarrels they both got the privilege. When Lattmann died, his widow continued with the help of Jäger, an Austrian cardmaker who later became her second husband. In 1929 the playing card business was closed and part of the material taken over by V.S.S.   [Notes kindly corrected by Peter Endebrock.]

Above: North German pattern by F.A. Lattmann, Goslar, c.1890. Images courtesy Rex Pitts.


standard English cards by Lattmann

Above: standard English cards by Lattmann. These are a close copy of USPCC’s US3. The joker is part of the advertising theme (Hirsch = stag, deer). The tax stamp on the AH is rather feint but is from the 1920s - no tax value given because of inflation. Images courtesy Ken Lodge.

Lattmann Saxon pattern with advertising for Eckstein Cigaretten
Der Feinen Welt, 1923
avatar
775 Articles

By Rex Pitts (1940-2021)

United Kingdom • Member since January 30, 2009

Rex's main interest was in card games, because, he said, they were cheap and easy to get hold of in his early days of collecting. He is well known for his extensive knowledge of Pepys games and his book is on the bookshelves of many. His other interest was non-standard playing cards. He also had collections of sheet music, music CDs, models of London buses, London Transport timetables and maps and other objects that intrigued him.

Rex had a chequered career at school. He was expelled twice, on one occasion for smoking! Despite this he trained as a radio engineer and worked for the BBC in the World Service. Later he moved into sales and worked for a firm that made all kinds of packaging, a job he enjoyed until his retirement. He became an expert on boxes and would always investigate those that held his cards. He could always recognize a box made for Pepys, which were the same as those of Alf Cooke’s Universal Playing Card Company, who printed the card games. This interest changed into an ability to make and mend boxes, which he did with great dexterity. He loved this kind of handicraft work.

His dexterity of hand and eye soon led to his making card games of his own design. He spent hours and hours carefully cutting them out and colouring them by hand.

Activity for F.A. Lattmann

Sign in to comment or save this article.


Related Articles

2025 Modern F.X. Schmid Bavarian Cards

Modern F.X. Schmid Bavarian Cards

From Plastic to Premium: The legendary F.X. Schmid Tarock & Schafkopf deck, reboxed, refreshed and r...

1880 Lattmann No.9 playing cards

Lattmann No.9 playing cards

with illustrated views of Dutch cities on the aces. This pack is for sale or exchange.

J. W. Spear and Sons

J. W. Spear and Sons

Jacob Wolfe Spear founded his company manufacturing fancy goods in 1879 near Nuremberg in Bavaria, G...

1949 Verkehrsmittel Einst und Jetzt

Verkehrsmittel Einst und Jetzt

“Verkehrsmittel Einst und Jetzt” transport quartet game by Bielefelder Spielkarten Fabrik GmbH, 1949...

1979 Gulliver im Land der Zwerge

Gulliver im Land der Zwerge

Gulliver in the Land of Dwarfs quartet published by Verlag für Lehrmittel, Pößneck.

Bass & Bass Jeu des Familles

Bass & Bass Jeu des Familles

Bass & Bass ‘Jeu des Familles’ made by Franz-Josef Holler, Münich, 1989.

Kaffeehaus-Pikett

Kaffeehaus-Pikett

Kaffeehaus-Pikett featuring the old Viennese Large Crown pattern, made by ASS.

1955 Darling

Darling

Darling pin-up playing cards designed by Heinz Villiger.

1960 Märchen-Quartett

Märchen-Quartett

Fairy Tales quartet game by F.X. Schmid, Munich, 1960.

1900 The Game of Numbers

The Game of Numbers

The Game of Numbers published by Globe Series, c.1900.

1970 DSA Textil Berlin

DSA Textil Berlin

Felix-Karte pack for Erste Deutsche Sack-Centrale / DSA Textil Berlin manufactured by VEB Altenburge...

1969 Porträt

Porträt

“Porträt” designed by Walter Krauss, 1969

Skat Express

Skat Express

One end Berlin pattern the other standard English pattern

North German Pattern

North German Pattern

The North German pattern appeared in the mid-19th century, derived from the French ‘Paris’ pattern, ...

Humouristic Quartett

Humouristic Quartett

“Humouristic Quartett” families game produced by Adolf Sala of Berlin.

1900 Figures Amusantes

Figures Amusantes

French language edition of a children's quartet game published by B. Dondorf, c.1900, consisting of ...

1875 Swiss Costumes

Swiss Costumes

Wüst's Swiss Cantons souvenir deck was published in Frankfurt in c.1875 for the emerging tourist mar...

1983 Jany Group

Jany Group

Deck issued to celebrate the Jany Group of Private Investors acquiring a controlling majority of Ver...

German playing cards

German playing cards

Card-playing rapidly became popular in medieval Bavaria and German printers were quick to supply the...


Sign in with Google