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card dimensions: 64 x 97 mm. |
card dimensions: 56 x 87 mm. |
card dimensions: 60 x 92 mm. |
A DETAILED COMPARISON
(for this the images are presented at 200%)
The first image in line is from the original deck, the second one from the Amstel 1870 reproduction and the last one from the odd edition.
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card dimensions: 64 x 97 mm. |
card dimensions: 56 x 87 mm. |
card dimensions: 60 x 92 mm. |
Because the original cards are somewhat bigger the image above is somewhat bigger too, but although the "oddity" is smaller the heads have the same dimensions.
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The original deck is printed in chromolithography, but doesn't have the quality of Dondorf decks. The details are rather crude, see the cross on the imperial ball. The reproduction is printed in offset, but with such a fine grid, that it comes close to the original. But the faces all seem to have a tan. The oddity seems to have been printed in simple lithography, based on a drawing in black with 4 additional colours. This technique does wonders for the details of the design and brings more expression to the figures.
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Because an outline was put around the design in the oddity edition, while the dimensions of the figures remained the same, compromises had to be made. Here above that's illustrated by the shorter point of the halberd. The Jack of Clubs (not depicted here) loses part of the point of his halberd.
It's nice to make these comparisons, but they don't really answer the main question: was the oddity first or is the original still the original? It's still a very difficult one to answer. At first we were inclined to think that our oddity is a later re-edition by Biermans. A cheaper, non-luxury version for everyday use. But these were usually printed in larger numbers than a luxury edition, so why don't we find these decks on offer more often? In fact we've seen more original decks on offer than this version, which we have never seen on offer again.
For a while we've been considering the possibility that it
was maybe a trial version of the pattern, printed to deposit the designs of the
courts. But there are things to be said against that too.
So....... we invite fellow-collectors, especially the Belgians, to shed their
light on this question. We'll be happy to add their comments here!
