The world’s largest playing card collections

Among the world’s great playing card collections is the one at the Fournier Playing Card Museum of Álava in Vitoria-Gasteiz, with thousands of packs from across the ages. Other notable collections include the Schreiber collection at the British Museum, the German Playing Card Museum’s collection in Leinfelden-Echterdingen and those held by major museums such as The Met in New York.

Vitoria-Gasteiz: the capital of playing cards

The Fournier Museum grew out of the collection belonging to the Heraclio Fournier company and is now managed by Álava’s provincial council. It brings together packs from around the world, printing plates and some very old pieces. It’s a must-visit for anyone who loves Spanish playing cards.

London: the Schreiber collection

Lady Charlotte Schreiber, a 19th-century British collector, donated her playing card collection to the British Museum. It’s a key resource for studying historic European cards.

Germany: the German Playing Card Museum

Near Stuttgart, the Deutsches Spielkartenmuseum holds an enormous collection of German, French, Italian and Spanish packs.

Private collections

Some private collectors own thousands of packs. Many come together through associations and fairs, where they swap pieces. If you’d like to get started, we can help with guides on how to choose a good pack of cards and how to care for it.

You’ll find more visiting details in our guide to playing card museums.