The World of Playing Cards Logo

Nintendo deck with Medieval theme

Published December 13, 2022 Updated December 13, 2022

Courts in medieval costume holding both French and Italian/Spanish suit-signs.

1971 Japan Nintendo Medieval Suits
deck with Medieval theme made by Nintendo PC Co. Ltd, Kyoto, Japan, 1971

There are in fact only five principal illustrations in this pack as the courts are identical within each suit. The figures on the courts are in medieval costume and hold French suit-signs at one end of each card and Italian/Spanish suit-signs at the other. On the Spades suit is a knight in armour, on the Clubs suit a squire, on the Diamonds suit a merchant, and on the Hearts suit the lady of the castle. A jester playing the lute can be found on each Joker. On the back are two crusaders, each holding a shield and a lance. This is one of the scarcer of the early Nintendo packs as it was issued in an edition of just 2,250 packs.

deck with Medieval theme made by Nintendo PC Co. Ltd, Kyoto, Japan, 1971 deck with Medieval theme made by Nintendo PC Co. Ltd, Kyoto, Japan, 1971

Above: deck with Medieval theme made by Nintendo PC Co. Ltd, Kyoto, Japan, 1971. 52 cards + 2 (identical) Jokers in plastic box marked “NP” (for Nissan Palsus). Size: 61 x 87 mm.

avatar
560 Articles

By Roddy Somerville

Member since May 31, 2022

Roddy started collecting stamps on his 8th birthday. In 1977 he joined the newly formed playing-card department at Stanley Gibbons in London before setting up his own business in Edinburgh four years later. His collecting interests include playing cards, postcards, stamps (especially playing cards on stamps) and sugar wrappers. He is a Past President of the Scottish Philatelic Society, a former Chairman of the IPCS, a Past Master of the Worshipful Company of Makers of Playing Cards and Curator of the WCMPC’s collection of playing cards. He lives near Toulouse in France.

Related Articles

1544 Virgil Solis

Virgil Solis

Remarkable pack of 52 animal-suited playing-cards designed and etched by Virgil Solis.

1972 Les Jeux de Pastor

Les Jeux de Pastor

Striking designs by Edouard Pastor focusing on the heads of figures from the medieval period.

1971 Le Jeu des Personnages de l’Antiquité et du Moyen-Age

Le Jeu des Personnages de l’Antiquité et du Moyen-Age

Edouard Pastor’s designs in black and gold inspired by Antiquity and the Middle Ages.

1995 Iroha Karuta for Hino City

Iroha Karuta for Hino City

Special version of Iroha Karuta, a traditional Japanese matching game, made for Hino City, Tokyo.

1990 Iroha Karuta

Iroha Karuta

Traditional Japanese matching game played mainly by children.

2010 Grunwald 1410 – The Battle of Tannenberg

Grunwald 1410 – The Battle of Tannenberg

Details from the famous painting of the Battle of Grunwald (1410) by the Polish painter Jan Matejko....

1994 Medieval Heraldry

Medieval Heraldry

53 cards of original hand painted prints taken from medieval manuscripts.

Playing cards with prints by Sumio Kawakami

Playing cards with prints by Sumio Kawakami

Woodblock print designs created by Sumio Kawakami in 1938-9, each card having a different illustrati...

Classification of Numeral Card Designs in French-suited packs

Classification of Numeral Card Designs in French-suited packs

The classification of numeral cards in French-suited packs, covering various pip designs in over 400...

1975 Hanuman and the Five Riders

Hanuman and the Five Riders

A selection cards showing characters from the 1975 Thai-Japanese film.

Why our playing-cards look the way they do

Why our playing-cards look the way they do

Analysis of early playing card designs: origins, suit differences, standardization, technological ad...

1875 Laughing Made Easy

Laughing Made Easy

a Victorian card game published by D. Ogilvy.

1995 Guanlangaoshou / Slam Dunk playing cards

Guanlangaoshou / Slam Dunk playing cards

Basketball-themed manga animated playing cards from Japan.

2020 Commoners playing cards

Commoners playing cards

Created by Ian Cumpstey dedicated to the common land and the countryside.

2019 Liber Ludorum

Liber Ludorum

Liber Ludorum playing cards created by Ian Cumpstey in the insular style, United Kingdom, 2019.

1987 Jeu Gothique

Jeu Gothique

‘Jeu Gothique’ illustrating the Gothic period in France, published by Editions Dusserre.