DECK OF THE MONTH

Just like the "Joker of the Month" in the Jokers section we will select a "Deck of the Month" from all the decks that we could add to our collection during that month. It will be what we consider our best find. We've started this section in April 2007 and without any doubt we can say here that over the years there will be antique, vintage and modern decks shown on these pages. Age, design and value of the chosen decks may be very different each time.

	I had hoped to find a deck which was interesting enough for me to buy at the joined convention of the (Austrian) Talon, the (German) Bube Dame König and the I.P.C.S. in Vienna, lasting from 26 until 29 September. The two trading sessions brought me 1 small patience deck and in the auction on Sunday there were 3 decks that I had my eye on, but was outbid.
	However, that little patience deck became the inspiration to show the deck below at this spot.

I bought the patience deck from a Dutch collector, because I thought I didn't have the joker with my deck. But when I had returned home and checked out the deck, my memory was proved wrong. Well, not completely, because the joker was in worse condition that the rest of the courts. So I must have remembered that there was an issue with the joker and interpreted as missing. Anyway, the patience deck was made by the Speelkaartenfabriek Nederland (SN) and has a pattern, which is usually referred to as Fortuna here in the Netherlands. It was in production between 1915 and 1942 in different versions.
Fortuna is in fact a reference to the title of the most luxurious version of this pattern. It was printed in chromolithography with some 4 colours more on the courts and aces than the cheaper versions, which were published as "Amstel", "Club" and since 1928 also as "Schelde" (same, but with a linen finish). Another distinguishing feature is a cream coloured background, only used in the Fortuna version.
Amstel and Club had the same coloured fronts of the courts and aces, but the Amstel version had backs, printed in 2 colours, and the Club version backs in only one colour. The used indices are usually Dutch, so mostly H, V, B, but also a K, V, B deck is known. And of course over the years the indices have grown a bit too.
The following factory numbers were given:
Fortuna - # 799 (gold corners, sliding box)
Amstel - # 422 (round corners, box), # 433 (gold corners, box) and # 444 (gold corners, sliding box)
Club - # 855 (round corners, box), # 888 (gold corners, box) and # 899 (gold corners, sliding box)
The patience deck was published in 1919 as Fortuna # 800 and has embellished aces with flowers instead of the usual castle aces.

What makes this deck a bit special is that it has English indices and that the suit signs are oversized. In Dutch I call them "lobbig", but that was translated to lobed and by Google as lumpy. Neither is exact, so I've used oversized. In all the Dutch editions more regular suit signs were used.
There's no cream coloured background and the backs are printed in two colours, so this is an Amstel version, as in # 444 (not mentioned anywhere, but it has gold corners and comes in a sliding box). The deck was published by the Holland America Line, as seen on the box and backs. The name of the maker, Speelkaartenfabriek Nederland, is found on the aces and in this deck also on the joker, no name on the box nor a logo or name on any of the other courts, which is done in all the other editions in my collection. Click HERE to see examples of this.

The backs show the ms Statendam. It's the third cruise ship of the H.A.L. with that name. Ordered in 1921, built in Belfast by Harland & Wolff in 1922 and launched in 1924. Further work stopped for 2 years, probably by financial issues, but when the Dutch government issued a loan to the H.A.L. in 1927, the ship was towed to Schiedam (NL), where it was finished at the Wilton ship yard. The maiden voyage to New York was on April 11, 1929. Her last voyage to Rotterdam left New York on November 24, 1939. During the invasion by the Germans in May 1940, she was docked in Rotterdam and got caught in crossfire, which started a fire on board that led to the complete destruction. She was scrapped in August 1940.

So the deck was most likely published in 1929, which makes the presence of the "little farmer" joker with the 2 horse shoes in the corners unusual. This SN factory joker was in use from around 1913 until around 1925 and the horse shoes usually indicate an early version. Together with the English indices and the oversized suit sign, I believe that the deck was specially created for the H.A.L. and the joker with a typical Dutch farm boy was added to please the international passengers. And of course to mention the Speelkaartenfabriek Nederland name more prominently at the same time.


Sorry, a few more lines again first. Some information about the courts, first described by the makers of the "Van NSF to SN" catalogue: on the chest of the King of Hearts here below is the motto of the Order of the Garter "Honi soit qui mal y pense" surrounding the harp, representing Ireland. The order of the Garter is the most senior order of knighthood in the United Kingdom.


The jacks represent Dutch cities. They show Dutch city emblems a bit hidden on their chests, except the jack of Hearts. He boldly show the shield of The Hague. The jack of Clubs shows 2 of the three crosses from the shield of Amsterdam. The jack of Clubs shows almost the complete shield of the city of Haarlem and the jack of Diamonds that of the city of Rotterdam.


The aces show Dutch castles. Most of them are a lithographic rendering of photo's by Schnabel Sr. from a book by H. Jongsma and Dr. A. Loosjes with the Dutch title for "Castles, country estates, gardens and parks of the Netherlands" (part I and II).