Shakespeare Black is the Classic Black edition of a collection dedicated to William Shakespeare and illustrated by Ukrainian artist Maksym Lebedyk. It was created from scratch, modelled on the Shakespeare deck published in London by Swan Sonnenschein & Co. in 1902. The collection, funded on Kickstarter, is completed by two other editions: Royal Burgundy and Antique.

• DesignMaksym Lebedyk
• PrinterNPCC
• Finishlinen, German card stock, metallic gold ink
• Tuck boxsoft-touch black card stock, embossing, gold and silver foil, custom seal

Design

The court cards depict characters from his plays, and each suit is associated with a type of passion: hearts for tender feelings, diamonds for wealth and greed, clubs for violence and conflict, and spades for intrigues that end in tragedy. So, for example, the King of Diamonds is King Claudius from Hamlet and the Jack of Hearts is Friar Laurence from Romeo and Juliet. The jokers include the jester Touchstone and Hamlet himself. The cards are double-ended, so they read the same either way up, and both faces and backs carry metallic gold ink. The tuck box, in soft-touch black card stock, features embossing, gold and silver foil, foil on the inside and a seal with the masks of comedy and tragedy.

Manufacturing

It is printed by NPCC on German card stock with a linen finish (a fine embossing that resembles the weave of fabric).