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Here are my Lo Scarabeo decks. They tend to do theme decks and art decks:



Here are some scans from the Gladiator deck so you can see that there is different art on every card. The upper left is the card back.

REALLY cool decks, samurai007! I know they break some of the basic rules - like "one-way back" and cards other than jokers and AoS being one-way also, but it's certainly an unusual group. I'm sure that I have never seen these before, so I for one really appreciate you taking the time to "show us your cards".

Mike Ratledge wrote:REALLY cool decks, samurai007! I know they break some of the basic rules - like "one-way back" and cards other than jokers and AoS being one-way also, but it's certainly an unusual group. I'm sure that I have never seen these before, so I for one really appreciate you taking the time to "show us your cards".

You're welcome! There are other Lo Scarabeo decks, I know of an Alice in Wonderland deck, the Kama Sutra, undersea life, mermaids, etc.

samurai007 wrote:

Mike Ratledge wrote:REALLY cool decks, samurai007! I know they break some of the basic rules - like "one-way back" and cards other than jokers and AoS being one-way also, but it's certainly an unusual group. I'm sure that I have never seen these before, so I for one really appreciate you taking the time to "show us your cards".

You're welcome! There are other Lo Scarabeo decks, I know of an Alice in Wonderland deck, the Kama Sutra, undersea life, mermaids, etc.

Interesting since I had never seen that name associated with "Playing cards" per se, only with Tarot decks. It's hard to tell from the picture - are these recent (very recent?) or are they 10 years or more old? Do they still make them? I found their website, and just like I expected, I only found Tarot decks there.

I also have a few Lo Scarabeo decks - one of Sea Shells, a Circus one, and a Pinocchio deck that sticks close to the original tale. Each is one I picked up for the great illustrations rather than because I wanted Lo Scarabeo decks. I've seen a few reproductions of antique decks by them as well. Was never taken with their repros since they tended to be modified to fit the Lo Scarabeo look.

Didn't know they had gone over to tarot.

Mike Ratledge wrote:

samurai007 wrote:

Mike Ratledge wrote:REALLY cool decks, samurai007! I know they break some of the basic rules - like "one-way back" and cards other than jokers and AoS being one-way also, but it's certainly an unusual group. I'm sure that I have never seen these before, so I for one really appreciate you taking the time to "show us your cards".

You're welcome! There are other Lo Scarabeo decks, I know of an Alice in Wonderland deck, the Kama Sutra, undersea life, mermaids, etc.

Interesting since I had never seen that name associated with "Playing cards" per se, only with Tarot decks. It's hard to tell from the picture - are these recent (very recent?) or are they 10 years or more old? Do they still make them? I found their website, and just like I expected, I only found Tarot decks there.

Gladiators: 2009
Hugo Pratt: 2007
Russian Tales: 2004
Dinosaurs: 2004
Argonauts: 2003
Liberty: 2003

They do still make playing cards, and some are posted on their site: http://www.loscarabeo.com/lang-en/43-cards-poker" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Here are the various sub-categories, click on each one to see their most recent decks of that type: http://www.loscarabeo.com/lang-en/36-cards" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Also, if you click on the 2013 catalog on the left and go to pages 56-57 you'll see more playing cards from them.

dazzleguts wrote:I also have a few Lo Scarabeo decks - one of Sea Shells, a Circus one, and a Pinocchio deck that sticks close to the original tale. Each is one I picked up for the great illustrations rather than because I wanted Lo Scarabeo decks. I've seen a few reproductions of antique decks by them as well. Was never taken with their repros since they tended to be modified to fit the Lo Scarabeo look.

Didn't know they had gone over to tarot.

Yeah, they have 2 pages of playing cards, and about 50 pages of tarot cards in their 2013 catalog, so tarot has become their main focus, but they continue to make some very nice playing cards too. There are several more I want to get.

Edit: Ok, having registered on their site and switched the prices to $ (site has a toggle with Euros), each deck costs $8.38. I just made a cart of 8 decks that I'd like and shipping to the US from Italy for those 8 decks is $18.45, which isn't too bad. Total came out to be $85.49, so less than $11 per deck including shipping.

Just a note that somebody is hawking fake "Evelyn Nicod" tarot decks on ebay right now, in fact I even know who forged them, but I won't print the name for legal reasons.

For one thing, her first name is Evelyne with an accent over the second 'e' (I don't have my international keyboard except on the phone) and Rodolfo Pardi, her husband - also confirmed that it was as I suspected - those darned forgeries of her Tarot decks made to appear to be from her "Gatteria" line, which is the same as the "Italian Cats" red/blue decks and even earlier B&W decks - of which I have precisely 2.

samurai007 wrote:

dazzleguts wrote:I also have a few Lo Scarabeo decks - one of Sea Shells, a Circus one, and a Pinocchio deck that sticks close to the original tale. Each is one I picked up for the great illustrations rather than because I wanted Lo Scarabeo decks. I've seen a few reproductions of antique decks by them as well. Was never taken with their repros since they tended to be modified to fit the Lo Scarabeo look.

Didn't know they had gone over to tarot.

Yeah, they have 2 pages of playing cards, and about 50 pages of tarot cards in their 2013 catalog, so tarot has become their main focus, but they continue to make some very nice playing cards too. There are several more I want to get.

Edit: Ok, having registered on their site and switched the prices to $ (site has a toggle with Euros), each deck costs $8.38. I just made a cart of 8 decks that I'd like and shipping to the US from Italy for those 8 decks is $18.45, which isn't too bad. Total came out to be $85.49, so less than $11 per deck including shipping.

Well, it took a little while, but the package from Lo Scarabeo in Italy arrived today! These 8 decks are now added to my collection:

This deck is produced by Cambissa & co situated in Triese,Italy.It is dated 1961 according to the tax stamp on the ace of coins .As you know Italy has no official national pattern, but has 16 regional patterns which are then divided into four styles.
This is the Napoletane regional Pattern which is the most common of all the patterns and is the Spanish style suit played in southern Italy. The tuck and card back with a poker card size comparison. The deck has Four suits Coins,Cups,Swords and Batons and each suit has 10 cards Numbers 1-7 and three courts Fante (Infantry soldier) Cavallo (Horse) and Re (King). In the Central and Southern style patterns the Ace of Coins is always shaped as an Eagle whose body houses a white round space for placing the Tax Stamp Note the Ace of Coins eagle has Two heads in all other southern patterns the eagle has only one head,Also some other interesting features are the 3 of batons has a grotesque face on it this is probably borrowed from early Portuguese patterns, The 5 of swords usually features a silhouette of a small rural scene and the Cavalier of swords is always a Moor wearing a turban and carrying a scimitar (This detail can be found in German style patterns as well) Thanks for looking -Jase- Any information you know to be wrong please let me know

Love the colours of that box. A friend of mine calls that colour "bus station green".

Great info with the deck J. I never did look at Italian decks very closely myself.

"Toscane Grandi No.85" from makers Modiano of Triese,Italy who have been producing Playing Cards since 1890. The "Toscane" pattern is from the French regional style which is mainly played in the north-western part of Italy. There are only 40 cards in the deck with each of the 4 suits having numbers 1 through to 7 and 3 court cards Thanks for looking at my cards -jase-

Bresciane Pattern . Made by Dal Negro The Bresciane pattern is clearly a variant of the Trentine pattern and has either 40 or 52 cards, King, Knight, Jack, Ace, 7-2 or 10-2. It is slightly smaller than the Trentine packs and the cards are single ended and unnumbered. The main differences between this pattern and the Trentine is that the jack of Swords, Batons and coins have lost their extra suit sign and background tree of flower motifs. The jack of Cups now holds his suit sign in both hands, also the Knight of Swords has a straight, as opposed to curved ,sword. The knight of Coins looks to the left-hand side of the cards face and all the knights and jacks appear to be on rough ground. The makers name is shown on the King of Batons and the knight of Coins. With regard to the number cards, the ace of coins has lost its portraiture, simply having the makers name (and tax stamp if any). The 4 of Swords shows a woman in a field and the 4 of Coins a lion and the makers name. The makers name also appears on the 2 of Swords. Thanks for looking at my cards -jase-

Haha boy are those hard to count..

volantangel wrote:Haha boy are those hard to count..

Tell me about it...the cards are really small (43mm wide x 89mm high) which makes them even more difficult to read.

A reproduction of a 19th century Italian deck by Editions del prado, produced by the fournier card museum from the original pack in their collection dated 1884. The pack shows the single figured Piacantine regional pattern, One of the five Italio-Spanish suited decks that are used in an area which, roughly speaking, covers the length of western Italy from Piacenza and Bologna to Rome. Of all the Italo-Spanish suited packs, which include the Sarde, Siciliane, Romagnole and Napoletane patterns. The most interesting pattern used is that of the Piacentine pack which has strong links with both French and Spanish packs and even a minor relationship with our own pack, for the Piacentine king of money and the English king of hearts originally bore the same figure. It was probably the first Spanish pack to be introduced into Italy, and the other regions evolved designs of their own at a subsequent time. From the few surviving pack from before 1750 it appears that Spanish suited cards followed the Italian fashion of reinforcing the edges of cards by binding them with a layer of paper turned over from the back. And the Spanish cards were narrow like the Italian ones. It was only from inscriptions, usually barely legible, that the country of origin could be deduced. By the end of the 18th century, however, Spanish cards ceased to have turned over edges and introduced a practice which Italy ignored, that of making a number of breaks in the border line surrounding the design. In common with the other Italo-Spanish suited patterns ,the Piacentine pack comprises of only forty cards, Four suits of 10 cards (Ace, 2-7, jack, knight and King). Both single figure and double headed Piacentine packs are known and made even today. Distinctive cards are, The Ace of money shows a single-headed crowned eagle (As opposed to the double-headed eagle of the Napoletane pattern and the uncrowned eagle of the Sicily pattern). The king of money holds an axe. The jack of cups holds a halberd and wears a sword. The knight of money is on a horse which has its back to the viewer, so the rider has to twist round to present his suit-marker to the world. Thanks for looking at my cards -jase-

LOMBARDE printed by Modiano The Lombard or Milanese pattern is one of the French Regional style decks used mainly in the North Western half of Italy.The pack can be either 40 or 52 french suited cards.The cards measure 50mm X 94mm.
The same composition as other french regional style cards with the following distinctive cards, the badge of Milan appears on the chest of the Jack of Clubs (the upper half of a human body protrudes from the mouth of a crowned serpentine monster).A falcon or parrot perches on the hand of the King of Diamonds, and the King of Spades appears in profile with his sceptre resting against his shoulder. BERGAMASCHE printed by Dal Negro of Treviso A 40 card deck (with some packs having 4 extra cards) The Bergamansche pattern is one of the Northern Italian regional style decks usually played in the North eastern portion of the country. the cards measure 51mm x 91mm.

Complete Bergamansche Deck Thanks for looking at my cards -jase-

SARDE printed by Dal Negro
The sarde or Roxas pattern is a Spanish Italian regional style deck of 40 cards, primarily used in the southern half of the country.the most distinguishing features of the sarde pack is that all the court cards from the Sword suit are wearing suits of armour and the 4`s of each suit has small vignettes.The cards measure 58mm x 88mm. Thanks for looking at my cards -jase-

TREVISANE printed by Dal Negro
The Trevisane or Venetian pattern is one of the Northern Italian regional style decks.These cards were probably known in places outside of the area immediately surrounding Venice and may well have been introduced to many foreign ports by Venetian sailors. All Aces carry Humorous mottoes, the Jack of Swords holds an executioner`s sword pointed down in his right hand, and a severed head in his left hand and the court cards are unnamed.the cards measure 51mm x 103mm. Thanks for looking at my cards -jase-

SALZBURG SPIELKARTEN, Printed by DAL NEGRO.
The Salzburg Pattern is a German regional style deck played in the central northern most section of Italy, and is ussed by a minority of the population.The Salzburg pattern is an Austrian version of the Bavarian Pattern, it has German suit signs, is always single-ended and bears no indices. Card 10 in each suit is numbered with a Roman numeral, whereas the rest of the cards are unnumbered. Thanks for looking at my cards -jase-

THE MOST BEAUTIFUL MUSHROOMS IN THE WORLD, Printed by IL MENEGHELLO in 1987. A original and rather novel design of the 22 major arcana by meneghello where the characters of arcana are re-depicted as mushrooms. While the connection between the original arcana card and the image chosen by Meneghello to replace it ,is unknown, there is no doubt of the beauty of the cards and of the set as a whole. Thanks for looking at my cards -jase-

SICILIANE PLASTIFICATE printed by DAL NEGRO
The Sicilian Pattern is one of the Spanish Italian regional style decks primarily used in the southern half of the country including the island of Sicily. The pack contains 40 single-ended cards which are unnumbered and unframed. In this pattern the different coloured bases refer to the values of the cards, the Kings stand on green bases, Knights on yellow bases and jacks on red bases. Regarding the actual suit signs, the cups look more like Grecian vases and the swords are thin and similar in execution to the Sicilian tarot. Thanks for looking at my cards -jase-

PIEMONTESI PLASTIFICATE printed by DAL NEGRO
The Piemontesi or Piedmont Pattern is a French regional style deck used in the North Western half of the country, Either 40 or 52 unnumbered cards per pack and always double-ended, the cards measure 50mm X 81mm. The piedmont pattern along with the Genoese pattern from the same regional style decks, are practically identical to the Paris pattern except that they use Green, Red, Blue and Black colouring, and the court cards are unnamed. The main difference between these two packs is that the Piedmont courts are divided by a horizontal line, while the Genoese court cards are divided by a diagonal line. Thanks for looking at my cards