Playing cards appeared in the German lands as early as 1378, evidenced by a local ordinance prohibiting their use for gambling in the city of Regensburg (Dummett, Game, p. 10). By the fifteenth century, the region had evolved into a powerhouse of European card production. This era produced the renowned Stuttgart Playing-Cards (Stuttgarter Kartenspiel), a luxury deck created circa 1430 (Husband, World in Play, pp. 15–26).

While the sixteenth century saw the crystallization of the distinct German suit system (Acorns, Leaves, Hearts, Bells), the region also imported and adopted French-suited cards; today, a geographic divide remains, with both systems in use. The nineteenth century marked the rise of industrial giants like Dondorf and Vereinigten Stralsunder Spielkarten, which capitalized on the domestic market (Kaschel, Spielkarten). By the twentieth century, ASS Altenburger emerged as the dominant producer (Keller (ed.), Catalogue, i, pp. 291–295).

Germany also has a complex relationship with Tarot. While the game of Tarot played a role in German leisure from the sixteenth century onward, the Occult Tarot took a different path. Introduced tentatively in the 1780s, it remained dormant for over a century, only achieving widespread popularity in the 1920s through the works of Ernst Tristan Kurtzahn and the subsequent production of specific German occult patterns (Decker and Dummett, History, chp. 12).

Introduction

Playing cards have been a fixture of German life since at least 1378. Over the centuries, Germany became a hub for printing innovation and card manufacturing, giving rise to distinct regional patterns and maintaining a dual tradition of both French and German suit systems. In the twentieth century, the country became a focal point for a unique revival of Occult Tarot.

History

The earliest documentary evidence of playing cards in Germany dates to 1378, when the city of Regensburg prohibited gambling with cards for large sums of money. This suggests that cards were already a known commodity capable of fueling vice. Corroborating evidence appears shortly thereafter in local records across the region: Constance (1379), Nuremberg (1380), Augsburg (1391), Frankfurt (1392), and Ulm (1397) (Dummett, Game, p. 10).

The Luxury and the Press

While early cards were often hand-painted luxury items, Germany’s role in the print revolution transformed the industry. The earliest German deck to survive intact is the Stuttgarter Kartenspiel (Stuttgart Playing-Cards), produced around 1430. This exquisite 52-card deck, of which 49 cards survive, measures a substantial 7 inches by 4 inches. Unusually, its four suits are Stags, Hounds, Ducks, and Falcons. The court hierarchy is also distinct: the court cards for Stags and Hounds are female, while those for Ducks and Falcons are male (Hargrave, History, pp. 89–90; Husband, World in Play, pp. 15–26).

Simultaneously, the German print industry was exploding. In the 1440s and 1450s, Johannes Gutenberg and others in the eastern German lands developed movable type, sparking a revolution. This technical expertise extended to card making. Historians have speculated that the technical demands of block-printing playing cards may have actually contributed to the innovations that fueled the broader printing revolution (Hargrave, History, pp. 89–91).

Standardization of Suits

The fifteenth century was a period of wild experimentation for card makers in the German-speaking lands (which historically included Austria and regions beyond modern Germany’s borders). Manufacturers tested various formats, including decks with five, six, or—in one peculiar instance around 1500—sixteen different suits (Dummett, Game, p. 15).

Themes ranged from the hunting motifs seen in the Stuttgart pack to heraldic devices and coats of arms. Eventually, makers settled on the standard German suit system: Hearts, Bells, Leaves, and Acorns. The “Bells” suit is a vestige of the earlier hunting theme, representing hawk-bells. This system became the standard in Central Europe by the sixteenth century (Dummett, Game, p. 4; Decker, Depaulis and Dummett, Wicked Pack, p. 30).

The native German court cards also formalized into an all-male hierarchy: the King, the Ober (Over-knave), and the Unter (Under-knave) (Mann, Collecting, p. 82).

An unusual but brief fad in the fifteenth century involved the production of circular cards. Despite their novelty, they failed to gain long-term traction and disappeared by the sixteenth century (Benham, History, p. 13).

Regional Patterns and Games

Because the Holy Roman Empire was fragmented into hundreds of duchies, margravates, free imperial cities, and kingdoms, no single “national” pattern emerged immediately. Instead, distinct regional patterns developed, including the Bavarian, Sudeten, Ansbach (or Nuremberg), Berlin, Prussian, and Saxon patterns (Mann, Collecting, pp. 83–91).

German manufacturers were also prolific exporters, sending cards to Bohemia, Austria, Hungary, the Balkans, and Poland, thereby embedding the German suit system into the culture of these neighboring nations (Parlett, Guide, p. 41). Today, a cultural divide persists within Germany: the traditional German suits remain dominant in the south, while the French suit system (Spades, Clubs, Hearts, Diamonds) has superseded them in the north (Parlett, Guide, pp. 29–30).

The sheer size of historic Germany allowed for a rich diversity of games. While Tarot spread from eastern France and Switzerland in the early seventeenth century (Decker, Depaulis and Dummett, Wicked Pack, p. 40), it was often played as Tarock. Other games such as Skat, Cego, Hombre, and Kaufquadrille became regional staples (Parlett, Guide, passim).

Industrialization (19th Century)

The nineteenth century brought industrial methods to card production, increasing scale and consistency. Major manufacturers rose to prominence, including Dondorf and Vereinigten Stralsunder Spielkarten (United Stralsund Playing-Cards), which emerged between the 1830s and 1870s (Crouch, et al. (ed.), Art, p. 194; Kaschel, Spielkarten).

Manufacturers catered to various preferences, producing 32- and 36-card decks for Piquet, as well as 52-card decks with both German and French suits. Smaller formats, such as 20, 24, and 48-card decks, were also produced (O’Donoghue (ed.), Catalogue, pp. 75–125).

Aesthetically, nineteenth-century German makers were fond of depicting royal houses and aristocracy (Crouch, et al. (ed.), Art, pp. 308–311). Historical themes were also popular; for example, a famous deck by Maximilian Frommann featured the story of Jeanne Hachette (Crouch, et al. (ed.), Art, p. 97).

The Occult Tarot Revival

The esoteric interpretation of Tarot, pioneered in France by Court de Gébelin and Etteilla, reached Germany quickly but took time to take root. In 1783, a student of Etteilla known only as Hisler published a version of Etteilla’s work in Leipzig. Despite this early entry, interest in Occult Tarot remained marginal for over a century (Decker, Depaulis and Dummett, Wicked Pack, p. 114).

A significant revival occurred in the 1920s, led by Ernst Tristan Kurtzahn. In 1920, he published The Tarot: The Cabbalistic Method of Enquiry into the Future as the Key to Occultism. Included with the book was a sheet of 78 uncolored cards to be cut out and colored by the user—the first domestically produced German occult Tarot pattern. Kurtzahn’s design blended the imagery of the Grand Etteilla with elements of the traditional Tarot de Marseille (Decker and Dummett, History, chp. 12).

Kurtzahn’s work sparked a wave of “Egyptianized” Tarot decks, reflecting a literal interpretation of the theory that Tarot originated in ancient Egypt. In 1931, Count Woldemar von Uxkull-Gyllenband produced a second edition of his book on the Book of Thoth, featuring imagery for the 22 Major Arcana heavily rooted in Egyptian themes.

Perhaps the most popular of this era was the deck devised by A. Frank Glahn for The German Tarot-Book (1924; 2nd ed. 1933). Illustrated by the artist Hans Schubert, this deck reinforced the trend of Egyptian aesthetics that defined the German occult Tarot of the twentieth century (Decker and Dummett, History, chp. 12).

Modern Manufacturing

The corporate landscape of German card making consolidated throughout the twentieth century. In 1897, Vereinigten Stralsunder Spielkarten acquired the Altenburger Spielkartenfabrik. Operations moved to Stralsund in 1931. Following several name changes and restructurings, the company emerged as ASS Altenburger Spielkarten (later just ASS Altenburger), establishing itself as the largest card producer in Germany. In 2002, the company was acquired by the global playing card giant Cartamundi (Cartamundi History).

Sources (References)

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