Regarding the designs of playing cards

Published December 28, 1998 • Updated May 10, 2022

The quality of playing card designs often deteriorates with time…

The quality of playing card designs often deteriorates with time…

"… if we do not study the ancient work directly and learn to understand it, we shall find ourselves influenced by the feeble work all around us, and shall be copying the better work through the copyists and without understanding it, which will by no means bring about intelligent art"

William Morris in The Decorative Arts, a lecture given to the Trades Guild of Learning, London 1877.

Playing cards by Valery Faucil, Rouen, c.1500

Above: 16th century cards by Jean Faucil, Rouen.

Above: cards by Hunt, London, c.1790-1800.

More examples of this tendency can be seen in studying the early examples of the Navarra pattern from Spain►

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By Simon Wintle

Spain • Member since February 01, 1996

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.