This is Montague vs Capulet, a stunning new Bicycle branded playing card deck, inspired by William Shakespeare's tragedy, Romeo and Juliet. This is a fully custom deck with an elaborate card back.

The cards are printed with metallic ink and printed on the upgraded Bee Card Stock by the United States Playing Card Company.

Every detail of this exquisite playing card deck has been thought out with immaculate detail. Characters have been put in all the right places. An original, striking masterpiece needed to be created to match the passion of the play itself.

Belgian Virginie Carquin is an absolutely amazing artist, and she illustrated the portraits for this new fine art deck with lots of details that you won't want to miss.

Every portrait is new and original, and time was spent characterizing each person so they are represented in their portrayal by Shakespeare's carefully crafted personas.

HEARTS

Romeo and Juliet could only be paired with Shakespeare in the Hearts suit. With Romeo and Juliet paired as King and Queen, then Shakespeare makes a cameo as the Jack of Hearts.

• Jack of Hearts - Shakespeare

• Queen of Hearts - Juliet Capulet - Daughter of the Capulets, sworn enemies to the Montagues

• King of Hearts - Romeo Montague - Fights for Juliet

• Ace of Hearts - Romeo and Juliet - Together

CLUBS

The Lion is the King of felines, so the family crest for the Capulets on the Ace of Clubs became the Lion. Representing the Capulet family are Tybalt, Lady Capulet, and Lord Capulet.

• Jack of Clubs - Tybalt - He's a vicious fighter, known as the Prince of Cats

• Queen of Clubs - Lady Capulet - Cruel, superior, and rich; you may notice a slight scar from a past violent attack from Lord Capulet

• King of Clubs - Lord Capulet - Violent, proud, quick tempered, rich and hates the Montagues

• Ace of Clubs - The Capulet Crest - The Lion, you'll see the Lion coming out of the broader club outline, which looks amazing printed in metallic ink by USPCC

DIAMONDS

Opposite the Clubs are the Diamonds. Felines and Canines are naturally against each other, so the King of the Canines became the Wolf for the Montague family crest. (opposite of the Capulet's Lion, as the King of Cats). The "W" for Wolf is also the mirror reflection in the water for the "M" in Montague. The Montague family crest is portrayed on the Ace of Diamonds. Representing the Diamonds are Mercutio (Romeo's best friend), Lady Montague, and Lord Montague.

• Jack of Diamonds - Mercutio - Friend of the Montagues, brash, loud, mercurial, and optimistic

• Queen of Diamonds - Lady Montague - Sad, rich, and feuding with the Capulets and dies of grief learning of her son's fate

• King of Diamonds - Lord Montague - Proud and rich, but holds a grudge against Lord Capulet

• Ace of Diamonds - The Montague Crest - The Wolf

SPADES

The remaining main characters are game changers in their own rights, including the Apothecary, the Nurse, and Friar Lawrence. They are all poor, but similarly had good intentions to a degree, even though they have their faults.

• Jack of Spades - Apothecary - Knows he shouldn't sell poison, but has to for money

• Queen of Spades - Nurse to Capulets - Some of the comedic relief in the play

• King of Spades - Friar Lawrence - Honorable, with good intentions, but naive

• Ace of Spades - Shakespeare - The Bard

Amazing card artist Nam Tibon illustrated the Bicycle branded tuck. Nam is known for his brilliant work on previous decks, including the Tally-Ho British Monarchy deck.

This deck is nothing if it's not fine art. The detail you'll find here could be on the walls of a gallery. And the cards are printed by the United States Playing Card Company (USPCC), the same company who makes the world's finest Bicycle, Bee, and Tally-Ho playing cards. The USPCC has been around since 1885.

Romeo and Juliet (King and Queen of Hearts) are portrayed moments before their tragic end. Juliet has the dagger, while Romeo has the poison bought from the Apothecary. The Jokers, side by side, also paint the scene of Romeo entering the tomb of the Capulet family, where Juliet rests.

DECK FEATURES:

• Printed by The United States Playing Card Company

• Bicycle® branded

• Inspired by William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet

• Illustrated by renowned Belgian artist Virginie Carquin

• 100% completely custom designed playing cards, including art, pips, royalty, backs, jokers, and everything else that you can put into a card deck

• Custom tuck cases

• 56 cards including a full 52 card deck, plus 2 Jokers, a character outline card, and a double-backed card

• Normal poker size deck of playing cards

• Upgraded Bee card stock from USPCC

• Printed with metallic inks

DESIGN NOTES:

There are almost too many details to point out on the deck.

• The Montagues and Capulets are different - even opposites - in almost every way. In line with "Two households, both alike in dignity..." they are both dignified and powerful, but at war with each other.

• How are they different? From the suits - of the full black Clubs of the Capulets to the hard lined red Diamond of the Montagues.

• The Montagues have the canine Wolf as their Crest, while the Capulets have the feline Lion as their Crest.

• Even the family colors (red and green) are opposites on the color spectrum. The Montagues have Red as their color, which can be seen in the suit color (Diamonds) and in their clothing. The Capulets are shown in black (Clubs), with a darker green in their clothing, so look close.

• The families' portraits also sit oppositely. The Capulets (Clubs) face inward, while the Montagues (Diamonds) face outward. The respective Lord and Lady from opposing families also face in opposite directions.

• The Jack of Spades and Jack of Hearts are traditionally known as the "one-eyed Jacks", so you can notice how only one eye is prominent in these portraits, going so far as to give the Apothecary (the Jack of Spades) an eye patch.

• The King of Hearts is typically known as the "Suicide King", and is portrayed here as Romeo.