Silk Playing Card
circa 1730-40 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This card in woven silk comes from a pack of forty eight (all the tens are missing). The backs of the cards in the pack, which are all identical, are covered with a seventeenth century print of a halbedier holding a shield bearing the arms of the Grand Dukes of Tuscany. The backs are wrapped around the edge of the woven image, a characteristic of Italian packs of the period. The Court cards (King, Queen and Knave) are based on a French design known as the Auvergne pattern. These cards may have been made as a gift, possibly a wedding present. The six of Hearts has the name of the maker, Giovanni Panichi, and his weavers’ mark, woven into the design.
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Woven silk - cream satin gathered with supplementary weft of black for Clubs and Spades, red for Hearts and Diamonds, and four or five colours for the Court cards: black, blue, green, red and beige. The one exception is the King of Hearts which has additional red.
Etching on paper - backs consist of an etching of a halbedier supporting the arms of the Grand Dukes of Tuscany wrapped round the woven silk card. |
| Brief description | Five of Diamonds; playing card in woven silk with print of a halbedier used as the back from a pack of forty eight; Florentine; circa 1730-40. |
| Physical description | One of a set of playing cards in woven silk with a print of a halbedier supporting the arms of the Grand Dukes of Tuscany on the reverse |
| Dimensions |
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| Summary | This card in woven silk comes from a pack of forty eight (all the tens are missing). The backs of the cards in the pack, which are all identical, are covered with a seventeenth century print of a halbedier holding a shield bearing the arms of the Grand Dukes of Tuscany. The backs are wrapped around the edge of the woven image, a characteristic of Italian packs of the period. The Court cards (King, Queen and Knave) are based on a French design known as the Auvergne pattern. These cards may have been made as a gift, possibly a wedding present. The six of Hearts has the name of the maker, Giovanni Panichi, and his weavers’ mark, woven into the design. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | 271:1-48-1866 |
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| Record created | August 30, 2013 |
| Record URL |
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