ASS Altenburger - Rommé - Französisches Bild

9/07/2026

ASS Altenburger - Rommé - Französisches Bild

INTRODUCTION & IDENTIFICATION DETAILS

Rather than examining a single pack, this post focuses on one of the most widely distributed German patterns, one that, curiously enough, uses French suits: the North German or Berliner pattern.

Being among the most common in Germany, numerous makers have issued their own takes on the design over the years. One of the most widespread versions is produced by ASS Altenburger, showcased here in their in their "Rommé - Französisches Bild" set.

This edition comes as a double pack of 55 cards, geared toward games like Rummy, Bridge, or Canasta, though it is also issued in other formats, most notably a 32-card version for Skat, Germany's national game.

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND & NOMENCLATURE NUANCES

This pattern emerged in the mid-19th century in Stralsund (northern Germany) as a derivative of the Hamburg pattern. It's also known as the "Stralsund pattern" (Stralsunder Bild), though this designation appears to be seldom used nowadays.

In 1907, the Vereinigte Stralsunder Spielkarten-Fabriken A.G. (United Stralsund Playing Card Factories Inc.) acquired the assets of the Berliner Spielkarten Fabrik Eduard Büttner & Co. (Eduard Büttner & Co. Berlin Playing Card Factory). The company kept selling Büttner's packs as Berliner Spielkarten (Berliner Playing Cards) and eventually as Norddeutsches Bild (North German style / pattern).

Today, German producers typically mark these packs with the legend Französisches Bild (French style / pattern) to indicate the use of French suits (spades, hearts, clubs, diamonds) instead of traditional German suits (hearts, bells, leaves, acorns).

The International Playing Card Society (IPCS) recommends the term North German pattern, although Berliner pattern (Berliner Bild) is still very common, especially in German sources and catalogues. On the other hand, the monicker Französisches Bild appears to stem from commercial considerations and should be avoided in research, collecting, and cataloguing contexts.

ICONOGRAPHY & DESIGN

As mentioned above, this pattern features French suits. On the pip cards and indices, their proportions and geometric design are closer to those found in traditional French patterns than to the shapes of the Anglo-American / International pattern. We can also point out that the Aces feature no distinctive traits or special illustrations beyond the central pip.

A notable detail appears in the cards inscriptions (maker's marks, commercial branding, etc.). Instead of standard print type, these are often rendered in cursive typeface, which lends them a distinct graphic character.

The indices usually use traditional German notation (A, B, D, K) rather than the international standard (A, J, Q, K):

A - Ass ⮕ Ace.
B - Bube (Boy / Lad) ⮕ Jack.
D - Dame (Lady) ⮕ Queen.
K - König ⮕ King.

The court cards are highly distinctive and virtually unmistakable, rendered with a high degree of standardization and fine detail, which that may explain, at least in part, the enduring success of these designs.

Paradoxically, they do not feature unique graphic elements, but rather a remarkable cohesion and consistency across different makers. While they do not reach the variety seen, in Spanish playing cards, they are hardly mere clones either, with a considerable number of interpretations and variants.

Below is an overview of their iconographic traits:

Jacks: hold a halberd in their left hand.
Queens: carry a flower in their hand.
Kings: three of them hold a sceptre in their left hand, and one (tipically the King of Hearts) a sword. As for their specific attributes:
- King of Hearts: holds an orb (Reichsapfel) in his right hand.
- King of Spades: holds a harp in his right hand, often featuring shapes that wouldn't exist on actual instruments, and occasionally drawn without strings.
- King of Clubs: holds a shield in his right hand.
- King of Diamonds: typically wears a laurel wreath, a very common though not strictly constant feature.

ABOUT THE FEATURED SET

The edition examined here is housed in a cardboard box featuring two 55-card decks alongside a small booklet with rules for several games in German.

The cards offer very good quality, with a smooth satin finish, pleasant tactile feel, and durable cardstock offering reliable slip and effortless handling. That said, the production quality sits slightly below manufacturers like Fournier or Piatnik.

This difference becomes apparent when examining the print quality. Under magnification, a slight aliasing (jagged edges) can be seen along the linework of the court cards. It's a subtle flaw, noticeable only upon close inspection, but it is certainly there. Oddly enough though, its no present on the pip cards or indices, nor on the three Jokers (each with a unique illustration), which showcase remarkably sharp and well defined outlines.

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RECCOMENDED FURTHER READING

ASS Altenburger - Skat Original - Turnier Bild: The official competition pack of the Deutscher Skatverband (German Skat Association), featuring the same pattern, albeit with specific pip colors for each suit.