Catalogue of the collection of playing cards bequeathed to the Trustees of the British museum by the late Lady Charlotte Schreiber.

FRENCE CARDS.

59

91. Place of issue uncertain; modern. Theatrical portraits. Complete pack, double-ended. The court cards are portraits of favourite
French actors and actresses: Potier, Mile. Grassari, Nourit, etc.
Backs decorated with a pattern of dots and stars in pink.
34 x 24 in.
92. Place of issue uncertain; c. 1850. Complete pack, engraved
and coloured. The court cards are of the same character as No. 79,
the figures being varied. No inscriptions. Backs plain blue.
34 x 2i in.
93. Place of issue uncertain; c. 1850. Complete pack. The court
cards are whole length comic figures. No inscriptions. Backs
decorated with a pattern of dots in blue.
3i x 21 in.
94. Place of issue uncertain. Eight cards from an ordinary pack,
viz., the 4 and king of hearts, the 3 and queen of spades, the 2 and
5 of diamonds, and the 4 and knave of clubs. The 4 of hearts has
been altered to a 10, the 5 of diamonds to a 9, and the 4 of clubs
to a 10; the suitmark of the queen of spades has been changed
to a heart. Backs decorated with a pink pattern.
38 x 22 in.
Humorous.
95. Atthalin's Cards. Complete pack of the cards designed by Baron
Louis Atthalin, in which the suitmarks form an integral part
of the compositions. These are of a burlesque and fanciful
character, the court cards being the usual subjects found on French
cards, but treated in a quite original manner. The knave of clubs
is a figure of Jacquemin Gringonneur sitting at work near his
easel, on which is an ordinary knave of clubs holding a medallion
inscribed " Louis Atthalin." Backs decorated with a small diagonal
pattern in gold on pink.
3g x 24 in. [S. Vol. II, pl. 71-74.]
96. Atthalin's Cards. A proof set of the preceding, uncoloured and
before the inscriptions. Backs plain.
97. "Cartes a Rire;" c. 1819, (attributed to Atthalin). Complete
pack, designed on the same plan as the preceding, but differing
altogether in the subjects, which are mainly political. The kings
and queens are caricatures of the reactionary newspapers of the
time, " Constitutionnel," Quotidienne," etc., and the knaves
satirise Chateaubriand, Talleyrand and others. [See Chatto,
p. 264.] Backs plain. In cardboard case bearing the title.
31 x 24 in. [S. Vol. II, pl. 67-70.]