Austrian Lloyd Steamship Company
Possibly one of the most beautiful decks produced for commercial purposes, this was printed by Modiano for the Austrian Lloyd Steamship Company of Trieste in c.1895

Centaur: Austrian Lloyd Steamship Company
Possibly one of the most beautiful decks produced for commercial purposes, this was printed by S. D. Modiano for the Austrian Lloyd Steamship Company of Trieste in c.1895. The Aces and jokers have maritime references, and the back is an advertisement for the shipping line. The deck has the title “Centaurus” on the extra card and a sailor on the Joker.


Above: “Centaurus” playing cards made by Modiano for the Austrian Lloyd Steamship Company, c.1895. The four Aces feature maritime artwork and the pack also includes a “Funny Joker” and a title card. Images courtesy Rod Starling & Barney Townshend.
Several later editions have been published with different artwork on the four Aces and Joker, including indices in the margins (see “Club Bridge”). A patience size edition is also known. A replica was also sold with an Italian magazine in the eighties, also printed by Modiano, with the magazine's logo on the back. They also added instructions to predict the future with the cards.

REFERENCES
Segeth, Uwe-Volker: Spielkarten Jugendstil und Art Déco, Edition Christian Brandstätter, Wien, 1994

By Barney Townshend
Member since October 06, 2015
Retired Airline Pilot, interested in: Transformation Playing Cards, Karl Gerich and Elaine Lewis. Secretary of the EPCS. Treasurer of the IPCS.
Related Articles

Justice playing cards
Ethical concepts in a deck produced by Riccardo Conturbia’s Passione Playing Cards Ltd.

Alan Tarot Deck
Reprint of a Tarock pack originally designed by Argio Orell for the Austrian Lloyd shipping company....

More Menthol Filter Cigarettes
Elongated cards with designs by Wong Yui Man advertising More cigarettes.

Jockey Club de Buenos Aires
Spanish-suited pack by Chas Goodall & Son Ltd for the Jockey Club, Buenos Aires.

Il Tarocco del Mondo Nuovo
Imaginative Tarot card designs by Amerigo Folchi relating to Columbus and the New World.

22 Artisti Liguri in 22 Arcani
Collaborative set of major arcana devoted to Christopher Columbus and his voyages of discovery.

Carte di Colombo
Fully illustrated pack designed by Pier Canosa commemorating the 500th anniversary of the discovery ...

Carte di Natale
Designed by Pier Canosa as a Christmas pack for the Cortina Art Gallery in Milan.

Lyon pattern made in Italy by Pietro de Santi
The Lyon pattern was initially developed in France during the 16th century. As Lyon was a trading hu...

Leadmill playing cards
Promotional pack for an arts centre in Sheffield with designs by Martin F. Bedford.

Laurenzo Propagine
Spanish-suited cards made in Italy by Laurenzo Propagine.

Il Tarocco Mitologico
Fully pictorial Tarot designed by Amerigo Folchi with figures mainly from Greek mythology.

Neapolitan pattern by Luigi Pignalosa, Naples
Two versions of the Neapolitan pattern from the British Museum by Luigi Pignalosa, Naples, 1875 & 18...

Simpson (Piccadilly) playing cards
Innovative advertising pack for Simpsons of Piccadilly designed by André François.

Hamlet Cigars
Advertising deck for “Hamlet mild cigars”, a Benson & Hedges product.

Smith-Corona Marchant
Simplified yet colourful court card designs by Avoine for Smith-Corona Marchant.
Most Popular
Our top articles from the past 28 days