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NEWSLETTERNo. 3 March 2014

How refreshing, the shining white spots under thebold shrubs. The snowdrops are just wild on expellingthe winter together with the spring squills and the aconites.„Spring is coming. You call me!“ That is what Javiersays every year at about this time. It just takes one calland he comes, armed with bucket and squeegee. Inno time at all he has freed all windows from their win-ter dust. When afterwards the view outside is undis-turbed, just so as if there were no glass in the windowframe, yes, at that point it is spring. So we promptlyair the wardrobe and treat it to a strong pinch of freshclothes. How good that tendrils and blossoms conquernot only windowsill and balcony, but also blouses,

dresses and pants this year. That is at least what fashion mags proclaimin huge headlines. But playing card collectors just give a weary smile atthat. For playing cards with spring themes have been around for an eter-nity. As well as such on fashion.

©CARTORAMA Jean Darquenne & Angela Joschko

The Russian Flower DeckFunny how Ekaterina Stupakova transforms the figures of thismodern pack from Russia into bloomy creatures. King ofHearts wears with a proud mien a cactus on his head as if it wasa crown furnished with diamonds. His sceptre also ends quitenaturally as a small prickling „hedgehog“. Jack of Clubs' headadorns a calla blossom. And Queen of Spades' a bellflower. Butnot just so. The heads do not carry the blossoms. They mergeinto each other. And their faces, that slightly blasé glimpse overthe left shoulder signals: „Yes, we are something special. Andwe know it.“ All kings are holding an insignia of their power in their hands,

even if it leads to a curious flowery tip fitting the flower theme. The jacks, in default of sceptres,hold stiff a bloom in the hand. As do the queens, way more el-egantly. But the aces, all of them potted in red tubs, theymust make do with playful ges- tures, which is certainly just ad-vantageous to their grace. Thus far, these are charming, slightly ironic pictorial series.They are the work of Russian artist Ekaterina Stupakova onbehalf of publisher Alexander Lutkovskiy.

And now the breach.

First you think that 2 decks have been jumbled. But no! MrLutkovskiy loves contrast. Totally different pips follow now. A strawberry blonde girlstretches and strains, chubby and stark naked, in the Russiantundra, or what we believe it is. Obviously always the same,very young model. Only the 2 photo-jokers step out of line: acurly oversized model with a red tulip and its skinny counterpartin a yellow colza field. Which supposedly means: here are ad-mittedly photographs and they don't match the illustrations atall, but we stayed true to our subject: „Nature in full bloom“.

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Inès de la Fressange really is a pretty woman. Would fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld have cho-

sen her as his muse otherwise? Well then, it was in the eighties. Today, in her mid-fifties, she still

is nice, but does not stalk any longer over the catwalk. She is herself a trendsetter. She has just

designed a collection for that Japanese fashion chain with an odd-sounding name to German

ears, „Uniqlo“.

For Inès de la Fressange stands for „Paris chic“. And those who want to know what that is, that

enviable certain something that seems to be inborn to French women, she'll be happy to assist

with her companion book. So, she also is an author. But why she created a deck of cards

that could suit as a dress guide, God only knows. We can only conjecture as to when the cards

were published. Probably in the mid-nineties, when she had launched her own couture label

after her messy divorce from Lagerfeld – he did not want her to act as a model for the French

„Marianne“, she did it still. Was the deck an advertising gimmick? Anyway, Jacks, Queens and

Kings – in French Valet, Dame, Roi – wear various outfits – whether big robe or casual

streetwear. The models with their extra-long legs pose like incarnate mannequins, profusely

outfitted with accessories, to which a dog, a cat or even a little monkey conspicuously often be-

longs. In some indefinite way, her drawings have something childish, they don't evoke at all the

great sketches by Karl Lagerfeld and other designers. On the numerals, she scatters seemingly

at random single oak-leaves, blossoms and maybugs. And now, they stick there as if they had

been caught in flight. But – cross your heart! – do not just the stumbling stones linger the longest

in the memory? It is just that, that peculiarly imperfect, which makes up the attractiveness of

the deck.

It is just second to none.

It is – Inès de la Fressange!

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Inès de la Fressange

Cartes Parisiennes

Lovers, who caused a furor, adorn the luxurious deck

„Cartes Parisiennes". It is par- ticularly nobly fitted with gilt

edges in red gold (hearts and diamonds) and yellow gold

(spades and clubs). The same deck also exists in a plain ver-

sion. This deluxe model here dates from 1853.

It had been commissioned by the short-lived fashion magazine

„Le Caméléon“ with the cardmaker Gibert in Paris. The figures

show 4 French couples: the Comte de Brissac and Diane de

Poitiers, the Comtesse de Rochefort and the Chevalier d'Éon,

Marion Delorme and Cinq-Mars as well as Bussy d'Amboise

and the Lady of Montsoreau. These last two couples yielded

enough material for novels from the feathers of the French

writers Alfred de Vigny, Victor Hugo and Alexandre Dumas.

The latter's depiction of life at the time of French King Henri

III was published in 1846 under the simple title of „La

Dame de Monsoreau“.

The cloak-and-dagger opus even made it on to television, 120

years later. Yet in the pack of cards the lovers evidently just

play the roles of models. The hand-colored steel engravings do

not show authentic fashion from the time of the protagonists,

rather exquisite robes of more recent times. Which indeed are

so rich in detail, so lushly illustrated that you can literally hear

the satin rustling. The portrays of the pairs also remain strik-

ingly close to handed down representations. Laid down side by side, the backgrounds of Jack, Queen and King

join to a consistent scenery, outlined in shades of grey.

Noteworthy is the narrow margin of the cards. This is – connoisseurs will know – due to the gilding of the edges.

For this purpose, the pack needs to be grinded and sanded in order to let the gold foil stick better to the paper.

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Uncommon, the design of this card deck commissioned by the industrialist Anton

Bolzani around 1915. A thin golden line divides the numerals in 4 rectangles. That

is very rarely seen. And because it is a so-called congress deck, it combines the

French and the German suit-signs. Spades and Leaves coalesce into an elegant green

Spade. The Acorns are complemented by a black cross similar to the protestant one

– with the small distinction that the knots at the tips are missing. And the Bells carry

an additional Diamond in gold. Only the Hearts remain Hearts and naturally red.

No more mention of Deuces. „ASS“ stands in sweeping letters on the corresponding

cards which carry their impressive central suit-signs on gilt background at the in-

tersection of the golden lines. Ace of Hearts has there the tax stamp with the in-

scription "DEUTSCHES REICH Nº 15 DREISSIG PF". That type of stamp was officially

in use from circa 1896 till 1902, after that „Dreissig“ should be written with „sz“

(a sharp “s”) instead of „ss“. But as the tax amount did not change, and that was the

main thing, a small mistake in orthography could easily be overlooked in favor of

a greater sustainability.

The commissioner, Anton Bolzani, was in Berlin at home. And so it does not come

as a surprise that he immortalised mainly Prussian rulers on the court cards. But

there is a twist here. The „Knaves“ – here Hindenburg, the German chancellor Beth-

mann-Hollweg, Moltke and Bismarck – could easily be entitled as Knaves. And so

it is written in smooth type on the cards. The Queens were dealt with quite simply.

They show each time the same allegory, Germania in knight's armor. Accordingly,

the cards are inscribed with „Dame“. But then what when the king is an emperor?

Wilhelm I for example, King of Prussia and first German Emperor? Or Wilhelm II,

King of Prussia and last German Emperor? Or Franz Josef I, Emperor of Austria.

(Only the fourth man in the bunch, Friedrich II, was just King of Prussia.) To call

them all „King“ would have been an outrageous faux pas. And so, any appellation

was just dropped. That is why nameless rulers – very lifelike – stare at the card

holder. This has its advantage: irrespectively of person and rank, you can look

squarely into the eyes of once so powerful men.

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Reform Card „Bolzani“

AND EVEN PLAY WITH THEM

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All figures and aces combined on 4 cards! To see how the cards really look like, click on the link or paste the address in yourbrowser: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/lcop2spxd8t52vj/LGqdOO33OZ

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Alexander Lutkovskiy (publisher), Novosibirsk. Rare Russian Cards. 9 of cups: Flowers. Design: Ekaterina Stupakova. 36 +JJJJ (all different), complete. Color digital printing, 89x59 mm, round corners, 2 Russian index marks. Backs: Back view of a naked woman amidflowers (color photo). 2008. Fine deck. courts, Aces and 2 of the 4 jokers are from the hand of E. Stupakova. The courts show slim figures with flowery hair (tupip, lily, chrysanthemum,cactus...), the aces are potted flowers. On the numerals are color photos of blooming female beings on a summer meadow. Min. damaged OCase, mint. US$ 56.00 € 40,-

Héron S.A., Mérignac. Inès de la Fressange. 52 + JJJ + EC, complete. Offset, 120x80 mm, round corners, 4 French index marks. Backs:Name and logo, red on pink background. Circa 1995. The courts are illustrated with color drawings by the renowned mannequin, fashion and perfume designer. Minimally damaged OCase, almost mint. US$ 56.00 € 40,-

O. Gibert, Rue des Billettes Nº 5, Paris. Cartes Parisiennes (Parisian cards). 52, complete. Hand-col. steel engraving, 82x54mm, square corners, gilt edge, no index mark. Backs: Plain blue. Maker’s name on Jack of Spades, “France“ on Jack of Hearts. 1853. Lit.: Braun 1802 var.; AdT 27, pp. 13-15; Cary coll. 361; Fournier 221. Kings and Queens portray French noblemen and their mistresses. Their exceptional bravery and exciting love-affairs made them to heroes of romanticnovels or dramas by renowned authors, e.g. Bussy d’Amboise and the Lady of Montsoreau (King & Queen of Clubs) by Alexandre Dumas (1845), or Cinq-Mars and Marion Delorme (King & Queen of Diamonds) by Alfred de Vigny (1826) and Victor Hugo (1831). On a long side of the box is „Saison d 185 „(Season of “” 185”“ : season and year not filled in), on the other side, on a pasted paper strip „Rue des Billettes. Nº 5“. Hidden under it, we find theaddress of the short-lived fashion magazine Le Caméléon („PARIS, RUE NEUVE ST-AUGUSTIN, 6.“), which establishes Gibert as the successor of Le Caméléon.Adorned aces. Deluxe edition with gilt edge and suit-signs printed in gilt (reddish gilt for Spades and Clubs, yellowy gilt for Hearts and Diamonds). Damaged ill. OBox, almost mint - slightly worn. US$ 1,022.00 € 730,-

C.L. Wüst, Frankfurt/M. Reformkarte „Bolzani“ (Reform Card „Bolzani“). 32, complete. Chromolith., 92x62 mm, round corners,gilt, 2 German index marks. Backs: Panel with a pattern of closely ornated tiles, blue, maker’s name at top and bottom. Tax stamp of the GermanEmpire No. 15 (Frankfurt/M.), value: 30 Pfennig (circa 1896 - 1902), on Ace of Hearts. Circa 1915. Lit.: Cary coll. 604; Suma [1982] p. 27; Kohlmann [1984] 18; NOT in Hoffmann/Dietrich [Skat]; Wüst [2005] 35; Büchler/Schultz [2004] 74. Combined German and French suit-signs and, at the same time, no revoke deck: hearts remain hearts and red, the bells have gilt diamonds at their side,spades and leaves have been merged to a green suit-sign of spades, and the acorns are accompanied by a black cross, a kind of protestant, or Occitancross without the knots. The deuces are now aces by name (“Ass“). The kings are Wilhelm II (hearts), Franz Josef I of Austria-Hungary (bells), Wilhelm I(spades) and Friedrich II of Prussia (acorns), the queens show in all suits the crowned and armoured Germania, and the jacks portray (in the same suc-cession of suits as the kings): Hindenburg, the German chancellor Bethmann-Hollweg, Moltke and Bismarck. The entrepreneur Anton Bolzani lived inBerlin (he was a.o. president of the Berlin Automobile Club), that is why the deck is listed in Kohlmann, „Berliner Spielkarten“. Unter of Acorns/Jack ofClubs carries the printed number „4308“. Fine print with much gilt. Slightly worn. US$ 2,310.00 € 1.650,-

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