Maya Deck

Published November 08, 2020 Updated June 09, 2024

The Maya Deck produced by Stancraft for Hoyle, 1976.

1976 USA Brown & Bigelow Stancraft Hoyle Carlos C Licastro Amerindian Art & Design

The Maya Deck, illustrated by the Mexican artist Carlos Capdevielle Licastro was produced by Stancraft Products for Hoyle in 1976. The court figures represent various rulers and ceremonial deities from this ancient central American culture, and the pip cards represent days and months in the Mayan calendar. The back design depicts Sky Serpents. See the information sheet

The Maya Deck produced by Stancraft for Hoyle, 1976

Above: the Maya Deck produced by Stancraft Products for Hoyle, 1976. 52 cards + 2 jokers + leaflet in a special box.

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detail from Códice Trocortesiano
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By Rex Pitts (1940-2021)

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.

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