Playing Card Deck

2003-42-20.1

From: Japan

Curatorial Section: Asian

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Object Number 2003-42-20.1
Current Location Collections Storage
Culture Japanese
Provenience Japan
Section Asian
Materials Paper
Iconography Zodiac
Inscription Language Japanese Language
Description

Set of Japanese playing cards with the twelve zodaic animals and corresponding kanji characters: 子(rat), 丑 (ox), 寅 (tiger), 卯 (rabbit), 辰 (dragon), 巳 (snake), 午 (horse), 未 (goat), 申 (monkey), 酉 (rooster), 戌 (dog), 亥 (boar). This set is incomplete as there are fifteen cards in total with duplicates of the rat, rabbit, and monkey cards. Some of the cards have a black back and some have an orange back. The game most likley relates to a game that is popular in Taiwan known as the Twelve Zodiac Cards (十二生肖牌) or the Rat Cards (老鼠牌).

Credit Line Gift of the Philadelphia Commercial Museum (also known as the Philadelphia Civic Center Museum), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 2003

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