Introducing a precisely digitally hand-recreated reproduction of the next Cotta’s almanac deck full of history, and for the fourth time, strongly touched by Schiller’s works, continuing after the previous yellow, green, and the blue one, which was the first published complete transformation playing card deck in the world!

The red Turandot deck is the fourth in a series of six famous transformation playing card decks we plan to release… This fourth Cotta’s almanac playing cards deck was originally published in 1809. There is no known evidence of any deck issued in 1808, and so this red almanac issued in 1809 is considered to be the fourth in a series.

Court card figures depict Arabs in various costumes, which could have been taken from sources of the seven climes (Persia, China/Turkestan, Khwârazm, Slavonia, North Africa, Byzantium, and India), which as well adds another historical value to its rarity.

Additionally to the series of Cotta’s almanac decks, all influenced by notable authors, this one might also draw on aspects from another Schiller’s work – especially the translation and his intriguing epic symbolic adaptation of Turandot, the famous commedia dell’arte (Italian comedy) play by Count Carlo Gozzi from 1762 after and originated in supposedly Persian story of Calaf’s adventure in the theme of the Arabic and Persian tales from the collection (Thousand and One Day) Les Mille et un jours (1710–1712) by François Pétis de la Croix.

The artwork also may have been inspired by the Arab population that migrated to Germany or even studied in Tübingen where the Cotta’s publishing house was founded. But mostly there was a friendship between Schiller, Goethe, Cotta, and Gozzi, who died in 1806, a year after Schiller in 1805, what might have been the true impulse.

KickStarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/playingcarddecks/cottas-almanac-4-transformation-playing-cards-reproduction

Full Deck Scan: https://cardscans.piwigo.com/index?/category/863-cottas_almanac_vol4