Arnold Schoenberg's creativity was not limited to music. He produced at least 250 paintings, and he even designed his own chess sets and playing cards. Unlike the Gilbert and Sullivan card game seen elsewhere in our exhibit, Schoenberg's cards are a standard deck: they are divided into the usual four suits, each comprising both numbered cards and face cards. They are not dated, but Schoenberg's style shows characteristics typical of German art in the period just before World War I.

This facsimile edition was produced in 1981, with a preface by the composer's daughter, Nuria Schoenberg-Nono. The original cards belong to the Arnold Schönberg Center in Vienna.