Hand-drawn transformation cards, c1875

For my 500th contribution to the World of Playing Cards, I have chosen a hand-drawn transformation pack dating from about 1875 or soon after. The artist does not appear to have signed any of the cards. He or she has used a standard De La Rue pack with a ‘blue strawberry’ back. What I particularly like are the use of silhouette on many cards in the red suits and the full use of the available space on most of the cards. There are some familiar subjects such as the rowing scenes on the 6 of Hearts and the 9 of Clubs. However, my own favourite is the steam train emerging from a tunnel on the 7 of Spades. Even the suit-signs in the corners of the court cards have been ‘transformed’. The more you look, the more you will see!

Sometimes the story behind the acquisition of a pack can be just as fascinating as the cards themselves. In this case, the pack was offered in a Christie’s (South Kensington, London) sale back in the 1980s. It was described as being incomplete and there was no estimate, suggesting that it would not fetch a high price. I had no time to view and arrived at the saleroom shortly before the lot came under the hammer. Imagine my surprise when my opening bid met with no counterbid from anyone in the room or on the telephone! Imagine my even greater surprise when I collected the lot and counted the cards. The pack turned out to be complete! I can only suppose that the auctioneers had failed to realise that the Ace of Spades formed part of the pack. Presumably they thought that it was an extra card. My lucky day!

Above: hand-drawn transformation cards by an unknown artist, on De La Rue cards made c.1875. 52 cards. Size: 63 x 90 mm.