Bourgeois Tarot

[2][3] The pattern is produced in two different designs: the Black Forest pack used only in southwest Germany and the Tarot Nouveau used everywhere else, but especially in France.

Meanwhile German cardmakers continued to follow the original design: no corner indices on the suit cards and centrally placed numerals on the tarocks (tarots).

Those of the 78-card, Fournier type depict genre scenes of whimsical early 19th-century social activities of the well-to-do European bourgeoisie, hence the name, Bourgeois Tarot.

Schmid used in southwest Germany for games such as Cego and Dreierles, have more rustic and rural scenes and the indices are placed at the top centre at both ends of the double-headed cards.

[6] Both corner indices and the reversible art of the courts and trumps facilitate the identification of cards when fanned in a player's hand.

The largest manufacturers of the Tarot Nouveau pattern are Cartamundi and its subsidiaries, Ducale, Fournier and Grimaud; and Piatnik of Austria.

Each card has one scene show an "urban" representation of a particular trait or idea (listed below), while the other side depicts a more "rural" interpretation.

[10] The scenes depicted are tabulated below together with an interpretation of the seasons and themes represented by the French Tarot club of Orphin:[11] The second type of pack in use is produced by F.X.

This variant of the Bourgeois Tarot depicts on its trump cards scenes of rural and town life based on woodcuts by Ludwig Richter.

[13] In the 1970s, this was the most common pattern used for playing Cego,[13] but ASS have ceased mainstream production and as of 2022[update] their pack was only obtainable from a couple of outlets.