Card game set, 'Snap', by J.W. Spear and sons, chromolithography on card, Germany, 1890-1910

Design: chromolithography
No. of cards: 32
No. illustrated: all

The named characters are designed as toys, for example joints are articulated with screws or rivets. The names are as follows:-
Old Aunt Sally, Jack, Jack in the Box, The Monkey (the kind on a stick that goes up and down), Mr. Punch, Judy, The Bow Wow and The Pussy Cat.

Rewards: n/a
Forfeits: see rules
No. of Players: any
Equipment required: 32 cards arranged in 9 sets of 4
rules sheet

Rules:
SNAP THE MOST POPULAR ROUND GAME
Any number of persons may take part. The cards are to be equally distributed and each player places his pile before him face downwards.
Each player in turn, takes the top card of his pile and places it before him face upwards.
Whenever two cards with the same picture are turned up, the player who first cries Snap can claim both cards and also any cards which may be covered by them.
If two players call Snap and it is not certain who was the first to cry, the disputed cards must be place in the pool, face up and played for as before.
The player who snaps all the cards is the winner.
JWS & S BAVARIA. PRINTED IN GERMANY


The basic rules for the game of SNAP.

Like Happy Families, Snap cards are arranged in groups, usually two but may be more, but each card in a group bears the same picture.
The object of the game is to win all the cards.

One player deals out all the card, one at a time and face down. It does not matter if some players have one card more than others. Each player puts his cards in a pile face down in front of him and the players are not allowed to look at their cards.
The dealer or the player to his left turns over the top card of his pile, and the next player does likewise and so on around the players until any player sees that the cards on the top of any two face-up piles are the same.
The first player to shout SNAP when there are matching cards collects both of these and puts them face down on the bottom of his pile. Players now continue to turn the cards over as before, beginning with the player to the left of the last one to turn over.
SNAP POOL, if two players shout `snap' together, the matching cards are put face up in a pool in the centre. Players then continue to turn over cards, and the pool is won by the first player to shout Snap Pool when the top card of any player's pile matches the top card in the pool.
When a player runs out of face down cards he simply turns over his face up cards when it is his next turn.
PENALTY, there are different rules for when a player calls `snap' in error:-
1. the player gives one card from his face down pile to each of the other players
2. the player's face down pile is put into the central pool to be won like an ordinary snap pool.

The game is generally played with forfeits, and the rules are simple enough for young children to enjoy playing. The cards are dealt equally among the players, face down and the dealer starts by turning over his or her top card to reveal an illustration. The next player to the left does likewise and, if that card matches the first, he or she `snaps' the first player, who pays a forfeit by giving up one counter.

Should the third player also have a similar card, he or she `snaps' the second player, who then has to pay a double forfeit by giving up two counters. The game continues until all the players but one have lost their forfeits and that remaining player is declared the winner. The game may be played without the forfeits.

EASY SNAP
This version is particularly suitable for very young children. Instead of having individual face up piles, each player plays his cards into a central face up pile. Players shout SNAP when the top two cards are of the same value.
SPEED SNAP
In this faster version of the game, players still turn their cards up one at a time but all players do so together.

JW Spear & sons

This game of 'Snap' was published in Germany by J W Spears & Sons around the turn of the twentieth century. The popular game has been designed using characters from children's stories and entertainment, including Mr Punch and Judy.

B.264:1to33-1996