Baraja Canaria
Comic courts and non-standard suits representing the Canary Islands, with designs by Eduardo Millares Sall.
Millares Sall was the creator of the cartoon character Cho Juáa (written as Cho-Juaá on the 4 of Coins) who appears on all the Kings in this pack. Cho Juáa (Don Juan) has been described as the “typical village opportunist” of the Canary Islands. The angular designs are indeed comic, with the Knights riding donkeys and the Jacks looking distinctly miserable while smoking. All the courts have red noses. The non-standard suits are named on each Ace – gofio (local staple food shaped into maps of the islands), gánigo (clay pots), naife (Canarian knife), and tollo (sticks of dried shark meat). On the predominantly blue reverse is an advertisement for Artemi rum. See the box►
The pack was originally issued in 1965 (see 4 of Coins) but reprinted in 1985 for Artemi, S.L., a rum producer in Gran Canaria. Packs with different advertisements on the reverse are also known (eg. Banco de Canarias). It was also reprinted in 1995 by Naipes Comas.
Above: Baraja Canaria printed by Heraclio Fournier, S.A., Vitoria, Spain, for Artemi, S.L., Gran Canaria, 1985. 40 cards in tuck box. Size: 61.5 x 95 mm. The back of the box merely reproduces the advertisement on the back of the cards.
This pack is item no. 787 in the Fournier Museum catalogue (Vol. 1). There it is stated incorrectly that the designs are by “Cho-Jurá”.
References
Encyclopedia of contemporary Spanish culture: Cho Juáa►
José M. Esteban in “Autores científico-técnicos y académicos”: Vocabulario canario guanche►
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.
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