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532 Articles

Roddy Somerville

  • France • Member since May 31, 2022

Roddy started collecting stamps on his 8th birthday. In 1977 he joined the newly formed playing-card department at Stanley Gibbons in London before setting up his own business in Edinburgh four years later. His collecting interests include playing cards, postcards, stamps (especially playing cards on stamps) and sugar wrappers. He is a Past President of the Scottish Philatelic Society, a former Chairman of the IPCS, a Past Master of the Worshipful Company of Makers of Playing Cards and Curator of the WCMPC’s collection of playing cards. He lives near Toulouse in France.

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1979 Swiss Souvenir

Swiss Souvenir

55 different scenic photographic views of Switzerland.

1950 Standard Swiss-German pattern (single-ended)

Standard Swiss-German pattern (single-ended)

20th century version of a single-ended Swiss-German pattern pack for the game of Jass.

1910 Genevan Dauphiné pattern

Genevan Dauphiné pattern

Unusual example of a double-ended Genevan Dauphiné pattern pack from c1910.

1974 Mini Jass

Mini Jass

Pocket-size cards with modern designs for playing the Swiss national card game, Jass.

1991 La Compagnie de 1602

La Compagnie de 1602

Characters from the annual festival held to commemorate the failed attempt to storm Geneva in 1602.

1990 New Musical Express

New Musical Express

54 black and white photographs of solo singers, duos and groups popular around 1990.

2018 France, Champions du Monde 2018

France, Champions du Monde 2018

Colour photographs of the World Cup-winning French football squad of 2018.

2002 Guildhall Art Gallery playing cards

Guildhall Art Gallery playing cards

54 different paintings from the collection of the Guildhall Art Gallery, London.

1999 The Fat Pack

The Fat Pack

A vastly expanded pack with 8 suits for playing traditional or new games, devised by Roger Howard Butler Clough.

2003 Ancient Egypt playing cards

Ancient Egypt playing cards

Fully illustrated set of cards depicting various aspects of Ancient Egyptian life and culture.

1985 Baraja Canaria

Baraja Canaria

Comic courts and non-standard suits representing the Canary Islands, with designs by Eduardo Millares Sall.

1988 Festa Major de Vilafranca 1988

Festa Major de Vilafranca 1988

Colourful figures associated with the annual festival held in Vilafranca, Catalonia.

1972 Loco Jumbo playing cards

Loco Jumbo playing cards

54 different colour photographs of steam locomotives from around the world.

1980 Haig Whisky

Haig Whisky

Japanese advertising pack for Haig Scotch whisky with modified international courts.

1971 Kawasaki Trump

Kawasaki Trump

Humorous publicity pack for Kawasaki featuring some of their many products.

1970 Maxim playing cards

Maxim playing cards

Publicity pack from Nintendo for Maxim freeze dried coffee.

1969 Ukiyo-E (Nintendo)

Ukiyo-E (Nintendo)

Classic examples of Ukiyo-E painting.

2006 Les Ordres de Chevalerie

Les Ordres de Chevalerie

Six orders of chivalry represented pictorially by the artist Patrick Dallanégra.

1962 Le Burling

Le Burling

1960s pack from Annecy with non-standard suits all connected with the office.

1980 Ethiopian playing cards

Ethiopian playing cards

A pack with court cards reflecting different ethnic and cultural groups found in Ethiopia.

1979 Gruppo Perotti playing cards

Gruppo Perotti playing cards

Stunningly beautiful designs by the Japanese artist Tiger Tateishi for Gruppo Perotti.

1981 Ilford playing cards

Ilford playing cards

Colourful advertising pack for Ilford designed by Mario Grasso, based on standard English courts.

1991 SCANIA 1891-1991

SCANIA 1891-1991

Centenary playing cards illustrating vintage trucks and buses produced by the Swedish company Scania.

2001 Euro Playing Cards

Euro Playing Cards

New euro banknotes and coins from several countries on circular cards.

1998 Magic: The Gathering® Poker Decks

Magic: The Gathering® Poker Decks

A pair of suited packs with artwork from Magic: The Gathering trading cards.

1982 Imperial Club playing cards

Imperial Club playing cards

Large index broad size cards by AGMüller using a special red ink suitable for casinos.

1915 Maquettes for an unpublished WWI pack

Maquettes for an unpublished WWI pack

Original designs depicting leaders and allegories from Russia, France, Great Britain and Belgium.

1997 Bohemia Moravia

Bohemia Moravia

Historical figures from Bohemia and Moravia in Piatnik’s traditional style.

1998 Jeu de 7 Familles France 98

Jeu de 7 Familles France 98

Families card game with comic designs featuring seven of the teams competing in the 1998 World Cup.

1996 Jackspack Royal Navy Playing Cards

Jackspack Royal Navy Playing Cards

54 humorous illustrations of Royal Navy characters and Navy slang.

1995 Le Jeu de Marseille (Vigno)

Le Jeu de Marseille (Vigno)

Amusing depiction of characters whom you might meet in the city and port of Marseille, as created by Anne Le Dantec.

1994 Vues de Monaco-Monte Carlo

Vues de Monaco-Monte Carlo

Souvenir pack with 54 different views of Monaco, especially Monte Carlo.

1994 Visite de Saint Tropez

Visite de Saint Tropez

Souvenir pack with 54 different views of Saint Tropez.

1994 Le tour de la Corse en photos

Le tour de la Corse en photos

Souvenir pack with 55 different views of Corsica.

1993 Golf Playing Cards

Golf Playing Cards

Humorous designs and non-standard pips poking fun at golf and golfers.

1994 Jeu de Familles Les Pierrafeu®

Jeu de Familles Les Pierrafeu®

Quartet game featuring The Flintstones and friends.

1982 Dallas playing cards

Dallas playing cards

Seven of the top stars from the famous TV series Dallas.

1994 Crystal Time

Crystal Time

Colourful and attractive designs by Violeta Monreal, inspired by stained glass through the ages.

1990 Nokia II

Nokia II

Advertising pack for the Finnish firm Nokia showing different mobile phones.

1989 Nordbräu Ingolstadt

Nordbräu Ingolstadt

Publicity pack for the German brewery Nordbräu with Bavarian pattern courts (adapted).

1969 Wicküler Skat

Wicküler Skat

Publicity pack for the German brewery Wicküler with courts merrily drinking beer.

1981 Barok playing cards nr 232

Barok playing cards nr 232

Courts dressed in Baroque costumes in a pack printed by KZWP, Kraków, Poland, 1981.

1994 Deutsche Dampflokomotiven

Deutsche Dampflokomotiven

German steam locomotives from the period 1892 to 1950.

1992 Joshi Bharát Tarot

Joshi Bharát Tarot

A set of the major arcana created by an Indian fortune-teller living in Hungary.

1984 The Firebird playing cards

The Firebird playing cards

Exquisite designs with characters and scenes from Russian folk tales by the artist Yury Shakov.

1988 Mercedes-Benz Skat

Mercedes-Benz Skat

Classy-looking designs by Monika Dostler for a manufacturer of posh cars.

1995 Bahlsen Skat

Bahlsen Skat

Publicity pack for a German food company, featuring some of their products.

1995 Marvel Poker

Marvel Poker

Marvel comic book characters on a pack from Italy with designs by Marco Nizzoli.

1986 Endangered Species and other animals

Endangered Species and other animals

54 different endangered species depicted in full colour published by Safari Limited, Ojus, Florida, USA, c1986.

1972 Rombach + Co Skat

Rombach + Co Skat

Publicity pack designed by Uschi Dorner for a bookshop in Freiburg im Breisgau.

1971 B & K Skat

B & K Skat

Publicity pack designed by Henning Loerzer for Busskamp & Koch, an advertising agency in Munich.