This is the second in Franco's current series on magic tricks, here
called "games of cards." As usual, comments in square brackets are mine,
in consultation with Franco, and the page numbers are those of Franco's
Italian pdf, "Giuochi di Carte, Bussolotti, e altro," posted June 8,
2024, at https://www.naibi.net/A/TARGIONI.pdf.
Games of cards, Bussolotti, and more
Franco Pratesi
1. Introduction
The manuscript book in question is the thickest of the three recently
found in the National Central Library of Florence, as indicated in a
previous study in which I presented the first of the series. [note 1]
The topic of the three books is again that of magic tricks, and I
consider only the part of it in which playing cards are involved.
In the Vannucci Inventory of the BNCF, we read only the following about this book: “Games of Cards and Bussolotti [balls and cups], with Illustrations, quarto, XVIIII century.” [note 2]
I read the book as if it were the first time; I found some games there
made not with common cards but with minchiate, and I then remembered
that I had reported something like this many years ago [note 3];
checking, I had to note with some amazement that it was precisely this
same manuscript which, evidently, I had had plenty of time to forget.
The fact that minchiate appears among the cards supports a Florentine,
or at least Tuscan, provenance of the manuscript. Unfortunately, there
are no indications that allow us to better specify the date during the
eighteenth century, or to trace the author.
2. The book Games of Cards, Bussolotti, and more, with illustrations [note 4]
I begin by reproducing the tables of contents relating to the use of the
cards as they appear at the end of the manuscript, on pages 557-562.
Instead of a single table for playing cards we find three, the first for
the cards alone, the second also with applications to calculation, the
third also with various tools. The asterisks before some games perhaps
indicate favorites. Only the first games were numbered; the numbers on
the right are those of the pages of the book; as you can see, the games
are not listed in order, but I considered it sufficient to copy the
table as present in the book, without rewriting the entries in ascending
page order.
BNCF, Targioni Tozzetti, 8, p. 107 (Reproduction prohibited)
1. https://www.naibi.net/A/MAGIA.pdf2. https://archive.org/details/sala.-mss.c ... 1/mode/2up.
3. The Playing-Card World, No. 50 (1987), 23-24. https://www.naibi.net/A/07-TRICKMIN.pdf
4. BNCF, Targioni Tozzetti, 8. [Giuochi di Carte, Bussolotti, e altro con figure.]
Page 2
Table of contents, card trick games
Page 3*1 Way to shuffle cards and keep track of one of them 2
2 Way to get the card you want taken from the deck 4
3 Ways to peel off [sfogliare] the card below to get the card that comes after 5
4 Another way to peel off the card 6
5 Third way of peeling off the card 7
6 How to cut the card for bassetta 8
7 Way of doing the cut or the volata to turn one card into another 10
8 Have four different people take four cards and making one card of all or none 13
9 Divining which card someone thought of, out of three placed on table 18
10 Changing one card into another without its being realized 21
12 Way to make someone touch that card that he wants 23
13 Finding in the dark and under a hat a card taken and shuffled into the deck 25
14 Finding a card taken at the number they want 26
Making the deck be raised [cut] several times and finding all the species [suits] together 61
Arranging the cards so that in all directions they make a primiera [four cards in four different suits] 63
Addition to the game above 74
Letting someone take a card, hiding it in the deck, and putting down the deck, and, without touching it, finding the card at the number he wants 89
Divining all the cards in a deck by extracting them from a place where they are covered 90
Other games that can be played with the cards arranged for the game above 91
*Changing two cards into each other placed under the hands or feet of two people 103
Divining a card that was taken without seeing it 105
Changing one card into another in full view of everyone 108
Blindfolded, finding another card in the pocket of a third party which had been taken and shuffled into the deck 64
Finding a card hunted, being blindfolded and sticking it with the point of the sword 65
Divining by smell the card that was taken 67
Making the cards that have been taken by various people come one by one to the pile requested
68
Letting someone take a card from a deck, shuffling it, and after doing so, whatever card they want will become the one taken 69
Letting someone find whatever card I want in the place that he will cut as he pleases the deck with another card [like a knife, separating the deck into two parts] 70
Divining all the cards in the deck after letting the cards be shuffled 73, 113, 46
Divining all the cards in the deck after letting the cards be shuffled 61
18, 19 Passing a card from one pile to another 31,32
20 Making the King of clubs become the Queen 33
Divining from 40 cards which one has been touched 120
Having multiple people take a card and never take the one they saw 123
Always cutting the deck at the card someone wants 127
Way to always win at thirty-one 131
Making a chosen one disappear from a deck of cards and having it found in an egg 76
Changing one card into another in full view of everyone 78
Another way to do this change 79
Having one card be taken and after shuffling it into the deck, placing three on the table, showing that none of them is the one taken, and at choice [of the persons?] making one of those three become the first card 80
Divining which of four cards laid out was touched 86
Showing everyone a card and saying it will be divined by touch and saying another card will be made to be the card you said and not the one seen by everyone 87
27 Divining by weight which card was taken 44
*28 Allow the card taken and shuffled into the deck to remain in your hand by throwing away all the others 45, 102
32 Selecting from a deck of cards the one chosen by a person under his command 50
33 After shuffling a deck, having a person without seeing them give you all the cards you will ask him 51
33a Divining which card someone thought of by making three piles 53
Making a deck of cards show all suit cards in one wat and all tarocchi in the other way57
15 Making a card that was taken and later shuffled into the deck be found stuck to the ceiling or wall 27
*16 Making a seven of diamonds [the most important card in scopa and scopone games] disappear and making it go wherever you want 24
17 Bringing 4 Kings together after placing them in various parts of the deck 30
22 Divining all or just one of the cards taken from a deck 36
23 Having a card taken from the deck and finding it again 38
*24 Giving a card one by one to several [persons], then shuffling and with only one card letting each person see his [card] [which had initially been given as different cards to each]
25 Making 4 aces become four cards seen by four people 41
Having someone take a card and shuffling it into the deck, to find it in the dark, burn it and have it reappear in the deck 111
26 Divining six cards thought of by six people 41
Giving half the deck to each of two people and having them remove a card and taking the two halves again, to find the cards chosen 58
Distributing 16 minchiate tarocchi so that in all directions they score 34 344, 45
Distributing 25 minchiate tarocchi so that in all directions they score 65 344
Distributing nine cards that in all directions score fifteen 63
With four cards showing as desired a flusso [4 cards of the same suit] and a primiera [four cards of four different suits] 71, 107
Index of Card Games and Calculation
21 Divining what card someone thought of 35, 125
Having made six piles of cards, divining the sum of those that are under them 114
Having made two piles of cards, divining what is underneath 115
Divining how many points are under more piles of cards 116
Having one person take a card and another some lupin beans or tokens and making it that this person has as many lupin beans or tokens in his hand as there are points on the card taken 82
Index of Card Games and Machines
Making appear by lot from a box containing 40 note cards a note card that indicates the card another person had taken 75
Two cards taken by two people, making them seen under a microscope one at a time 84
Having a card taken disappear from the deck and appear painted on a ring on your finger 106
Finding a card with a wand blindfolded and in the dark 110
Making the card taken and shuffled into the deck to be left attached to a wand, however, touching them one by one 99
Page 4
3. ExamplesPutting a deck of cards in someone’s pocket, turning it into confetti or something else 93
Making the card taken by a person appear in an egg 289
p. 35. Guessing what card someone has thought of.
First of all, you notice which card is at the bottom of the deck, then you say, think of a Card, and count to what Number it is, and keep it in mind, then take the deck, and pretend to shuffle the Cards, but don't do anything other than placing the Cards on top of the others, and then cut as much as you want, and then looking at the Cards, and having them tell you at what number it was, starting to count from the Card that was originally at the bottom, you will find it at the same number as the Card thought of.
p. 38. Having someone take a card from the deck and find it again.
Put together in a jumble all four suits, and placing them thus in the deck you will have them take a card; if they take one from the middle downwards of the deck, give them a dozen Cards from above, and if they take one above, give them a dozen Cards from below, by telling them to mix the card they took with those cards, and then having them returned to you easily you will find it again, because if you have placed all the red cards from the middle down, you will find a black card, and so the game will be Done.
BNCF, Targioni Tozzetti, 8, detail from p. 9 (Reproduction prohibited)
Florence, 06.08.2024p. 50. Game of finding a card taken by another, making it move without touching it.
Have them take and look at a Card, and then have it returned and placing it at the bottom of the Deck you will use a Hair prepared in your hand with a little wax, and you will attach it to the Card, and after placing the deck you will tell them to call that card, which will come out to your obedience from the Deck, and if you do it with skill the game will be beautiful, but it must be observed that when the Card comes out of the Deck, you take it, and remove the hair with wax so that no one can notice it.
p. 57. Making the cards show all tarocchi in one way, and suit cards in the other way.
You place a tarocco and a suit card in such a way that the tarocchi are higher than the suit cards as much as the size of a thaler, and therefore leafing through them from the top, they show all tarocchi, and from the feet all suit cards.
p. 61. Recognizing that a Card is missing from the Deck by reviewing it only twice. [This title appears to be missing from the table of contents.]
All the Cards count 220, evaluating them up to 7 for the Number cards, what they are, and the Jack 8, the Queen 9, and the King 10, and therefore at the first glance you will see what number is missing, and at the second you will recognize precisely the quality and the suit of the missing card.
p. 63. Arranging the Cards in a formation that in every direction makes Primiera [in the game of Primiera, four cards of all four suits].
Arrange the Cards in the shape seen below, signified by the words. [S = Spades, H = Hearts, D = Diamonds, C = Clubs]
S H D C
C D H S
H S C D
D C S H
To play the game, you usually take the 12 court cards and the 4 aces.
p. 73. Way to divine all the cards in the deck, after giving them to be shuffled.
When the deck is returned to you, first of all observe with skill what the first card is, and then carrying the deck behind your shoulders, you will carry with your thumb and index finger the card you have already seen, and in the palm of your hand you will have laid out [i.e. exposed] the card that follows, and at the time you will say: the first will be such a card, and you will throw it on the table, you will look at the other one that you have in the palm of your hand, and so you will go back to the beginning, and If you want, you will be able to guess them all, observing that you never turn your hand in such a way that the card arranged from time to time behind your shoulders can be seen.
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