If it is both precious and rare everyone wants to have it. That’s what happened at Christies New York auction where bidders competed against each other to win a deck of cards. It was not an ordinary pack of cards that people play with for money. It was more valuable than money. The cards are made of silver. It is an extremely rare set of German engraved and parcel-gilt silver playing cards. The precious cards bore the signature, Michael Frömmer, Augsburg, 1616.
It was Christie’s sale of Important Silver and this deck of cards was not only important but rare as only five sets of silver playing cards are known to survive today. The frenzy of the bidders was understandable; still the final price it fetched was way beyond the pre sale estimates. The deck of silver playing cards managed to fetch a whopping $554,500, more than doubling the pre sale estimate of $150,000 to $250,000.
What made this deck of cards even more special that is the only complete deck of 52 cards in existence that are engraved in the four Italian suits: swords, batons, cups, and coins, each suit with a king, a knight, a knave, and pip cards ace through ten.
