​​my playing card collection
Mercante in Fiera
Mercante in Fiera (Merchant at the Fair) is a mild gambling game for children dating from the 18th century and often played in Italy at Christmas time.
It is best played with at least six persons. There are two decks of 40 cards with identical faces and different coloured backs. One player is the merchant. After each player pays the opening bid to the merchant they are dealt two cards each from the first pack. The remainder of the first pack are auctioned off sight unseen in groups of 1-4 by the merchant. All cards won are placed face up in front of each player.
The money collected is divided into first, second and third prize. The second pack is turned over one by one and matched until only 3 cards remain. These are the winning cards–whoever matches the first card turned over wins the third prize, then the second, and the person who can match the last card wins the first prize. More detailed instructions can be found here and here.
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​My Ref:
Il Meneghello
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Milan, Italy
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Il Meneghello
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1992 (11th Edition)
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80 cards 84 x 49mm
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Special
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​#81
The text on the card above reads: "This game of the merchant at the fair reproduces a collection of tin toys from all over the world and was designed and printed by us in 1300 copies numbered from 1/1300."
Il Meneghello Edizioni was founded in 1974 by Osvaldo Menegazzi with the object of re-publishing original designs of old playing cards and tarot for a new audience in limited numbered editions.
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Their collection includes many beautiful designs including the transformation Carte Toscane here.
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