Print, playing-card, Reuben Townroe, 1874

Complete pack of 52 double-ended playing-cards with french suit-marks, plus a duplicate 6 of spades. Accompanying the pack are two wrappers, an outer and inner one. On the inner wrapper is "international playing cards", "de la rue & co. 110 bunhill row, london" and "designed by reuben townroe for felix summerly's art manufactures". The outer wrapper is the stamp or duty cover with "card stamp three pence", the initials "v r", and the address of de la rue and co. A notice of these cards reprinted from the times of december 3rd 1874 accompanies the pack. Represented on the four aces are queen victoria, u. S. President, ulysses grant, the emperor, alexander ii of russia, and the german emperor, wilhelm i. All the court cards have the names of the countries they represent incorporated in their costume. Chromolithograph, etched duty wrapper backs blue having on them printed in gold the royal arms of england with those of saxe-coburg-gotha combined on one shield. Below is another shield with the double-headed eagle of prussia combined with the george and dragon. 1874. Date: 1874. Dimensions: Height: 94 mm; Width: 64 mm. Medium: pasteboard. Collection: British Museum. Print, playing-card (BM 1982,U.4626.1-52 1)