ROYAL PLAYING CARDS

ROYAL PLAYING CARDS

This special deck of cards was first issued by C. L. Wüst for the Dutch market in 1890 to celebrate Queen Wilhelmina’s accession to the throne (as a 10 years old) upon the death of her father King William III.

It was re-issued again in 1898 when she for her enthronement as Queen Regnant of the Netherlands.

The first set has a box showing a picture of Wilhelmina as a child and the second a picture of her as a young woman. Both these editions have the queen of spades showing a Javanese woman, and the queen of hearts representing the Netherlands (the Dutch Virgin). The 3rd edition is from c. 1905 and contains different queens of spades and hearts both in regional costume. The Aces show views of Dutch cities or colonies. The Kings depict Dutch sovereigns, the Jacks are soldiers and the Queens show traditional costumes. The Wüst firm was established in 1811 in Frankfurt Germany and continued until 1927.

We also have a deck of cards issued in Batavia Indonesia in 1879 for the wedding of King Willem III and Queen Emma by the firm Eynste Java playing cards.

INFO:  The world of playing cards website