Early playing cards [graphic].
1707
Items
Details
Title
Early playing cards [graphic].
Created/published
London?, circa 1707.
Description
52 copper-engraved pictorial cards ; 91 x 61 mm
Note
This is a PRELIMINARY RECORD. It may contain incorrect information. The "FAST ACC" number is a temporary call number. Please email catalog@folger.edu for assistance.
Genre/form
Prints (visual works)
Place of creation/publication
Great Britain -- England -- London.
Item Details
Call number
FAST ACC 272255
Folger-specific note
From dealer's description: "Marlborough's Victories. London? circa 1707. 52 copper-engraved pictorial cards (complete) (91 x 61 mm), comprising 4 suits of 13, numbered I to X, and lettered knave, queen, king, several cards with head & shoulder portraits of monarchs, remainder with battle, allegorical, and other scenes, each with suit sign to top right, numeral or name to top left, and caption to lower margin, some cards close-trimmed, king of spades with consequent loss of upper single line border, some faint toning and occasional small foxing spots, plain versos; preserved in a custom-made protective fold-over sleeve fitted into a custom-made clothcovered box. A rare complete deck of early playing cards, commemorating the events of the reign of Queen Anne, and particularly the victories of John Churchill, the first Duke of Marlborough (1650-1722), during the War of the Spanish Succession (1701-1714). Hargrave judges them 'the most elaborately engraved' of all the English historical cards. 'They tell the story of the disputes concerning the Spanish succession and other events of the reign of Queen Anne, between 1700 and 1708. Some of the cards have portraits of important personalities, Queen Anne (as the queen of clubs, as well as in her victory chariot on the ace of hearts), Charles III of Spain, Eugene of Savoy, and several others. The spade suit is a scathing satire of the reign of Louis XIV' (Hargrave, p. 197). The satirical depiction of Louis XIV and the French include an image of the French king in bed captioned 'Give Him Blood to Drink', and a portrayal of Madame de Maintenon as a turkey seller. John Churchill, the first Duke of Marlborough receives a mixed treatment, first celebrated for his victories, with a victory column erected, but then vilified for squandering public money: 'Had you my Post pray Dou'd not you, Tell mony over as I do'. These pictorial cards were not just playing cards, but were used like a story-board with illustrations, 'speech ribbons' and text telling the reader about a specific historical event. They were used as a medium of communication, propaganda or education, and as an effective way of shaping public opinion. The engravings have been attributed both to Francis Barlow and to Samuel Fullwood, though a note on the Worshipful Company of Makers of Playing Cards (WCMPC Collection No. 240) says that Fournier's claim that this pack was made by Samuel Fullwood is incorrect. 'This pack is often acclaimed as one of the most finely engraved of the early English political cards and features a 'rogues gallery' of the monarchs involved with the war' (Kathleen Wowk, Playing Cards of the World, 1983, p.94). Not on OCLC which lists a facsimile edition of 1972; copies traced at BM, V&A and Clark with incomplete copies at Columbia and WCMPC. Hargrave, p.197; Tilley, p.123; Whiting, pp.138-149; Wowk, p.94.. Ordered from [for example, Amanda Hall Rare Books, D9595, 2022-07-20, Cat. 45 item #136.
Folger accession
272255