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II / (Two of Swords): P.14633-R(6)

Object information

Current Location: In storage

Titles

II / (Two of Swords)

Maker(s)

Printmaker: Unknown
Publisher: Tourcaty, J. Francois, fils

Entities

Categories

Description

Two crossed, curved swords, with initials, 'E.S' at the centre to either side of a flower motif. Roman numerals, 'II', printed at centre left and right. From an incomplete pack of Tarot of Marseille, with Italian suits, 73 of 78 (including one partial card). The Two of Coins is inscribed with the publisher's name: 'J . FRANCOIS . TOURCATY . FILS', followed by 'ANNO', although no year of publication is given. 'J. François Tourcaty fils' was the son of playing-card maker and engraver, Jean François Tourcaty (1734-53), who was based in Marseilles. The son's dates are thought to be 1763-1793 after. Missing cards are: King and Queen of Cups, Five of Cups, Three of Swords and Two of Clubs. The trump pack is complete, although the lower half of the first card, 'Le Bateleur', is missing. The numerals of 12, 'The Hanged Man' are printed back-to-front as 'IIX'. A number of the cards are inscribed with initials: 'E.S.' on Two of Swords, Six of Swords and Eight of Swords; 'Le Chariot' bears the initials 'F.T.' ; All the numeral cards of the suit of Clubs are inscribed with the letters, 'B.A.'. The backs of the cards are printed in blue with a 'diamond' pattern. This pack contains suppressed and missing court cards where regal titles and crowns have been effaced and similarly in the trump pack, the titles and crowns of characters on such cards as the Pope, Popess, Emperor and Empress are missing. This suppression of sovereignty was common practice in playing-card production during the revolutionary period in France, 1789-1799, and continued into the early nineteenth century. Other collections hold similarly suppressed packs: See Bibliothèque nationale de France: http://catalogue.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/cb409185685. Another set, similarly censored, is in the collection of the British Museum: 1896,0501.568.1-58. See O'Donoghue, Freeman, Catalogue of the collection of playing cards bequeathed to the British Museum by Lady Charlotte Schreiber, London, BM, 1901, no. 17.

Legal notes

Bequeathed by Spencer George Perceval, 1923

Acquisition and important dates

Method of acquisition: Bequeathed (1923) by Perceval, Spencer George

Dating

18th Century
Circa 1789 - Circa 1799

Note

Height 117mm x width 60mm

School or Style

French

Techniques used in production

Hand colouring
Woodcut

Identification numbers

Accession number: P.14633-R(6)
Primary reference Number: 225004
Stable URI

Audit data

Created: Wednesday 5 September 2018 Updated: Monday 2 October 2023 Last processed: Friday 8 December 2023

Associated departments & institutions

Owner or interested party: The Fitzwilliam Museum
Associated department: Paintings, Drawings and Prints

Citation for print

This record can be cited in the Harvard Bibliographic style using the text below:

The Fitzwilliam Museum (2024) "II / (Two of Swords)" Web page available at: https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/225004 Accessed: 2024-11-03 12:54:40

Citation for Wikipedia

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{{cite web|url=https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/225004 |title=II / (Two of Swords) |author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2024-11-03 12:54:40|publisher=The University of Cambridge}}

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