Re: Trionfi.com: News and Updates
Posted: 12 Apr 2021, 08:33
We've spoken of Geiler over the years. He is the principle basis for the identification of Imperatori with Karnöffel.
Ross 2009, discussing Filippo Maria Visconti's 1420 law about card games:
viewtopic.php?f=12&t=334&p=5187&hilit=vicissitudo#p5187
Mike Howard 2020, in his transcription of Dummett's Game of Tarot:
viewtopic.php?f=9&t=1175&p=22205&hilit= ... udo#p22205
‘But now a game has been invented
which is called Kaiserspiel or Karnéffel in which
everything is turned upside down: thus “the 3s
beat the Ober, the 2 beats the King, and so on;
and there occurs a wonderful transformation
(vicissitudo) of Kaisers, as in this game the Kaiser
is made by chance now from this set (cetu), now
from another.’ ‘But now another game has been
invented with the ranking of the cards such that
the Unter beats the King, and the 2 and the 6
likewise, the 3 beats the Ober and the lower-
numbered beats the higher-numbered; and it
may happen that from this number some are by
chance made Kaisers.’43
43 Sed nunc ludus inventus gui appellatur (keiserspil)
ludus Caesaris: vel (karniffelius) in quo hec omnia
pervertuntur: ita ut tria vincant superiorem: duo regem etc.
fitque mira vicissitudo cesarum: ut in hoc ludo iam de hoc
cetu, iam de alio fiat cesar ad fortunam ... Nunc aut est
alius ludus inventus in cartas potestatum ut inferior vincat
regem/ et duo et sex etc. tria superiorem et minor maiorem:
si fuerit ex horum numero qui forte fortuitu facti sunt
cesares’, Sermones Prestantissimi Doctoris Fohannis Geilert
Keisersbergtt de Arbore Humana, Strasbourg, 1515, pp. 132b-
133b.
The German text differs
slightly. In it, the first passage runs: ‘But now we
have a game called Karniffelspiel in which
everything is turned upside down: the 3s beat an
Ober, the 4 beats the Unter, the 2 and the 6 beat
a, King; and a card is turned over, so that now
one is Kaiser, now another becomes Kaiser, as
luck will have it.’The subsequent passage runs:
‘But now there has been invented another game
with the ranking of the cards such that the Unter
beats the King, the 2 and the 6 beat the King, the
3 beats the Ober, and the lower-numbered beat
the higher-numbered, when they are in the game
of Kaiserspiel.’44
44 Aber jetz so hat man ein spil/ heisset der karniffel spil
karniffelius/ da seint alle ding verkert/ die drü stechen ein
ober/ die fier den undern/ zwei und sechs stechen ein
künig/ und so schlecht man umb/ ietz so ist einerlei keiser/
darnach so würt ein anderer lei keiser/ wie das glück gibt ...
Aber ietz so ist ein ander spil funden in dem regiment/ auff
der karten/ das der underbüb sticht den künnig/ die zwei
und sechs ein künnig/ die drü den obern/ und der minder
den merern/ wan sie von dem keiser spil sein’, Geiler von
Kaisersberg, Das Buch de Arbore Humana. Von dem menschlichen
Baum, Strasbourg, 1521, pp. 138-40.
Ross 2009, discussing Filippo Maria Visconti's 1420 law about card games:
viewtopic.php?f=12&t=334&p=5187&hilit=vicissitudo#p5187
Mike Howard 2020, in his transcription of Dummett's Game of Tarot:
viewtopic.php?f=9&t=1175&p=22205&hilit= ... udo#p22205
‘But now a game has been invented
which is called Kaiserspiel or Karnéffel in which
everything is turned upside down: thus “the 3s
beat the Ober, the 2 beats the King, and so on;
and there occurs a wonderful transformation
(vicissitudo) of Kaisers, as in this game the Kaiser
is made by chance now from this set (cetu), now
from another.’ ‘But now another game has been
invented with the ranking of the cards such that
the Unter beats the King, and the 2 and the 6
likewise, the 3 beats the Ober and the lower-
numbered beats the higher-numbered; and it
may happen that from this number some are by
chance made Kaisers.’43
43 Sed nunc ludus inventus gui appellatur (keiserspil)
ludus Caesaris: vel (karniffelius) in quo hec omnia
pervertuntur: ita ut tria vincant superiorem: duo regem etc.
fitque mira vicissitudo cesarum: ut in hoc ludo iam de hoc
cetu, iam de alio fiat cesar ad fortunam ... Nunc aut est
alius ludus inventus in cartas potestatum ut inferior vincat
regem/ et duo et sex etc. tria superiorem et minor maiorem:
si fuerit ex horum numero qui forte fortuitu facti sunt
cesares’, Sermones Prestantissimi Doctoris Fohannis Geilert
Keisersbergtt de Arbore Humana, Strasbourg, 1515, pp. 132b-
133b.
The German text differs
slightly. In it, the first passage runs: ‘But now we
have a game called Karniffelspiel in which
everything is turned upside down: the 3s beat an
Ober, the 4 beats the Unter, the 2 and the 6 beat
a, King; and a card is turned over, so that now
one is Kaiser, now another becomes Kaiser, as
luck will have it.’The subsequent passage runs:
‘But now there has been invented another game
with the ranking of the cards such that the Unter
beats the King, the 2 and the 6 beat the King, the
3 beats the Ober, and the lower-numbered beat
the higher-numbered, when they are in the game
of Kaiserspiel.’44
44 Aber jetz so hat man ein spil/ heisset der karniffel spil
karniffelius/ da seint alle ding verkert/ die drü stechen ein
ober/ die fier den undern/ zwei und sechs stechen ein
künig/ und so schlecht man umb/ ietz so ist einerlei keiser/
darnach so würt ein anderer lei keiser/ wie das glück gibt ...
Aber ietz so ist ein ander spil funden in dem regiment/ auff
der karten/ das der underbüb sticht den künnig/ die zwei
und sechs ein künnig/ die drü den obern/ und der minder
den merern/ wan sie von dem keiser spil sein’, Geiler von
Kaisersberg, Das Buch de Arbore Humana. Von dem menschlichen
Baum, Strasbourg, 1521, pp. 138-40.