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A playing card with a hand printed motif of a skeleton on a horse

On off-white card stock, a fine lined engraving depicts a skeletal figure wielding a large scythe and riding a horse. The light brown horse, with gaunt face and protruding ribs, is shown in profile, facing left, rearing up on its back legs. The rider, pale hair blowing back from its skull and a gray robe around its bony shoulder and waist, looks ahead, gripping the scythe. Its long shaft, which extends from the rider’s feet to above its head is attached to a massive, blue, crescent shaped blade that curves downward above its skull. The Roman numeral “XIII” appears at upper left. Five concentric dotted lines form a border around the image.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
M2056
People
Unidentified Artist
Title
Playing Card: Death (Trump XIII)
Other Titles
Former Title: Card LXIX
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/251728

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Engraving with stenciled opaque watercolor on card
Technique
Engraving
Dimensions
sheet: 9.5 × 5.6 cm (3 3/4 × 2 3/16 in.)
Inscriptions and Marks
  • inscription: upper left, in plate: XIII.

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
Edward W. 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
M2056
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