Petit Lenormand’s Confusing History

The following was cut from my forthcoming Grand Tableau course (29 Sept 2014) and might interest some.

Das Spiel der Hofnung

On her death, in 1895, Lady Charlotte Schreiber [1] bequeathed her large collection of fans and playing-cards to the British Museum. Included within this substantial collection was a set of cards named Das Spiel der Hofnung (The Game of Hope).

Johann Kaspar Hechtel [2] conceived the Das Spiel der Hofnung as a parlour came. The thirty-six cards were laid out in four rows of nines, and the players would throw a dice, paying forfeits for landing on unfavourable positions, in the hope of finishing before their fellow competitors. Each of the thirty-six cards featured Germanic and French playing-card inserts and a central symbol, which are conceptually identical in both emblem and order to the latter ‘Petit Lenormand’ decks.

Within the instructions, Hetchel noted that the game could be used…