A playing card with a hand printed motif of two fish
Photo © President and Fellows of Harvard College
Photo © President and Fellows of Harvard College

On off-white card stock a fine lined engraving depicts two fish, side by side, yellow with orange fins. The fish at left is upright, with its open mouth at top, and its tail below, while the fish at right is opposite, with its tail above and head below. A long green ribbon of seaweed extends from one fish’s mouth up to the other’s. The fish hover over the surface of the water below them, printed green, within which a small duck swims by at center. The Roman numeral “XXXI”, appears at upper left, and five concentric dotted lines form a border around the image.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
M2074
People
Unidentified Artist
Title
Playing Card: Pisces (Trump XXXI)
Other Titles
Former Title: Card LXXXVII
Series/Book Title: Tarots Playing Cards for Florentine Game of Minchiate, Complete Set of 97 Cards
Classification
Prints
Work Type
print
Date
19th century
Places
Creation Place: Europe, Italy, Tuscany, Florence
Culture
Italian
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/251722

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Engraving with stenciled opaque watercolor on card
Technique
Engraving
Inscriptions and Marks
  • inscription: upper left, in plate: XXXI.

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
Edward Waldo Forbes, gift; to Fogg Art Museum, 1921

State, Edition, Standard Reference Number

Standard Reference Number
see W. G. Benham, pp. 5-7

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Gift of Edward W. Forbes
Accession Year
1921
Object Number
M2074
Division
European and American Art
Contact
am_europeanamerican@harvard.edu
Permissions

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Exhibition History

  • 32Q: 2220 18th-19th Century, Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 01/16/2020 - 07/30/2021

Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of European and American Art at am_europeanamerican@harvard.edu