For the next fourteen years all Chad Valley Toys were marked “Toymakers to H. See the Rules→Ībove: “Old Maid” card game manufactured by Chad Valley Co Ltd, mid-1950s.Ĭhad Valley received a Royal Warrant in 1938. In this edition the “Old Maid” is depicted as a grey-haired lady sitting knitting accompanied by her white cat.
The object of the game is to form matching pairs of cards but to try to avoid being the player left holding the “Old Maid” card, who is the loser. All the cards are presented in a colourful style depicting various crafts, trades and professions. It is known in Germany as Schwarzer Peter, in Sweden as Svarte Petter, in Denmark as Sorteper, in Hungary as Fekete Péter, in Finland as Musta Pekka (all meaning 'Black Peter').Ĭhad Valley’s “Old Maid” game was published in the 1950s. “Old Maid” is a Victorian family card game probably deriving from an old gambling game in which the loser pays for the drinks.
