kwaw said:
I can't read the text, on what basis are they thought to be spanish tarot cards rather than being standard Spanish suited playing cards?
Kwaw
The author speaks from Tarocchi cards, that is from a "Spaansche Tarokspil" - which shouldn't guarantee, that the cards are not usual Spanish playing cards.
The owner of the cards is somebody else, Heer CHRISTIAAN VAN DER POST, te Leiden. I would think, when the deck included trumps, the author would have shown one of them.
But ... even with this condition ... playing cards of 16th century are rare
objects.
In the text is a passage, which seems to indicate, that something happened in 1574 (not connected to the presented 4 cards). Either somebody learnt to play Tarot or he found cards:
"'t Verwondert mij zelfs, hoe zoo iets geschreven
heeft kunnen worden door VAN BERKHEY, die toch de beide
Tarokspelen wel zal gekend hebben, door zijnen voorzaat WILLEM AELBRECHTZ BERKHEY, den 3den October 1574, toen Leiden
was ontzet, te Leijerdorp in de schans van den spaanschen
overste FRANCISCO DE VALDES gevonden."
For this:
"October 3, 1574
In the 16th century the Dutch rebelled against the authority of Spain. Most of the fighting took place in the south of the Netherlands; the northern part could consider itself liberated towards the end of the 16th century. Before that, though, battles took place and the siege of Leiden was an important event.
Leiden was besieged for nearly a year in 1574. The Dutch army, led by William of Orange (nicknamed "the Silent"), deliberately flooded the fields around Leiden, breaking the dikes, to force the Spanish armies to raise their siege. The Spanish tried to lure the citizens into surrender with promises, but the people of Leiden decided to stick it out in spite of a terrible shortage of food which brought the people of Leiden on the verge of starvation. Finally the Spanish withdrew, and the siege ended on October 3, 1574. The Dutch army entered the city with food: bread with cheese and herring. The date on which the siege ended, the third of October (Leidens Ontzet or Leiden's Deliverance), is still celebrated every year with large scale festivities, and.... with bread and herring. "
So WILLEM AELBRECHTZ BERKHEY, who was present at this date, should have known, that two games of Tarot were found in "Leijerdorp in de schans van den spaanschen overste FRANCISCO DE VALDES" (Schans is German "Schanze" and means an attacking bastion during a siege, likely with some canons on it; the chief of this bastion was Francisco de Valdes). When the Spanish troops had disappeared, the cards were found.
Another man with the same name Berkhey (a descendant of the other Berkhey and "Van Berkhey was a doctor and naturalist who became senior lecturer in natural history at Leiden University and is best known for his monumental works on the natural history of Holland. He was also a poet; in light-hearted mood he here provides verses to accompany de Mare's etchings." - a man living at the end of 18th century, the web knows him; he was dead in 1812 and naturally also 1850 in the time of the author) has an opinion in the specific card question the booklet is about, which our author doesn't understand.
This younger Berkhey wrote about Leyden 1574 - so he really should have known that local matter about the Tarot cards.
BERKHEY, J. LE FRANCQ v. Het verheerlykt Leyden, bij het tweede eeuwgetijde van desz. heuchlijk ontzet, in den Jaare 1574. Leyden, 1774.
Jehan Bresson was the cardmaker. This sounds like a French producer.