Number 10, Sympathetic Cards, from the Tricks with Cards series (N138) issued by W. Duke, Sons & Co. to promote Honest Long Cut Tobacco 1887

This is Number 10, Sympathetic Cards, a promotional card made by W. Duke, Sons & Co. for Honest Long Cut Tobacco. The image depicts a magic trick, dominated by symbols of chance and hidden knowledge: playing cards. The arrangement of cards catches my eye. The hand fans out a deck, presenting a spectacle of potential, while isolated cards above suggest a controlled outcome. Consider the diamond suit. Historically, the diamond represents material wealth, but also resilience, derived from the unbreakable nature of the stone. Does this card hint at a psychological game where our desires and wills are tested, where luck is perhaps not as random as we believe? The imagery evokes ancient forms of divination. Like tarot or casting lots, playing cards serve as tools to reveal hidden patterns. The act of selecting a card is charged with a mix of hope and anxiety, tapping into our deeply ingrained need to predict and control our fates. Through the centuries, these symbols have been continually reinterpreted, each era finding new reflections of its own anxieties and aspirations.