A Nation Told Through Its Kings
THE LEGENDARY COURT
A new collectible playing card deck inspired by Lithuania’s early rulers, chronicles, legends, and cultural memory.
Launching on Kickstarter September 23
THE ROYAL COURT
The first deck in the series presents Lithuania’s historical monarchs, queens, and knights through original playing card art.
Its court is built around rulers whose lives were shaped by wars, dynastic alliances, political ambition, cultural exchange, and the rise of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.
Each card combines portraiture, heraldry, symbolism, and historical detail, forming a visual court drawn from the best-documented chapters of Lithuania’s medieval past.
THE LEGENDARY COURT
The second deck turns toward an earlier and less fully preserved layer of Lithuania’s past.
Its kings are remembered not through complete biographies, but through decisive acts, transformations, and turning points that endured in chronicles and cultural memory.
Together, they represent origin, early political power, resistance, sacrifice, and sacred change—figures whose stories helped shape Lithuania’s national epic and historical imagination.
Kickstarter pre-launch page now live.
The Four Kings Revealed
FOUR KINGS. FOUR LEGENDS.
FOUR FOUNDATIONS.
Four foundational stories shaped Lithuania’s historical imagination—its identity, character, and self-understanding.
Over the weeks leading up to the launch, their stories will unfold through short films, illustrations, and historical narratives.
The Countdown Has Begun
Launching September 23 on Kickstarter
Follow the pre-launch page now and be among the first to enter the second chapter of The Monarchs of Lithuania.
Why Follow Before Launch?
Not just playing cards — this is storytelling in your hands.
You should be here because:
Discover the Kings
Follow the stories of Palemonas, Ringaudas, Margiris, and Šventaragis before the campaign begins.
See the Court Take Shape
New cards, historical research, symbols, artwork, and short cinematic stories will be revealed throughout the coming month.
Be There on Day One
Kickstarter followers are notified the moment the campaign goes live on September 23.
NOTIFY ME ON LAUNCH!
The Royal Court - The First Chapter
Explore the completed first chapter of the series — now accompanied by a 76-page illustrated book.
Royal Court Deck
The original collectible playing card deck that began The Monarchs of Lithuania series.
Collector’s Set + Companion
A premium collector’s edition combining the Royal Court deck, presentation set, Dealer’s Coin, and 76-page illustrated companion.
Companion Booklet
A 76-page illustrated guide to the rulers, symbolism, history, and visual language behind The Royal Court.
The Epic Stories Behind the Cards
The Legendary Court explores the deeper layer of Lithuania’s historical memory — the rulers and narratives that stand between chronicle, legend, and national imagination.
Palemonas, Ringaudas, Šventaragis, and Margiris are more than individual figures. Each represents a larger foundational legend: origins and migration, dynastic continuity, sacred tradition, resistance and sacrifice. Together, these narratives helped shape how Lithuania understood its past—and, through that past, itself.
The deck approaches these figures not as an attempt to turn legend into documented history, but as part of a broader cultural memory in which historical fact, oral tradition, later chronicles, and national identity became intertwined.
Each card is therefore only one point of entry. Behind it stands a wider story, explored through illustration, historical context, symbolism, and short visual narratives created alongside the deck.
Four kings. Four legends. Four foundations of Lithuania’s historical imagination.
Why This Matters
Lithuania was the last pagan kingdom in Europe—and one of the most powerful.
These decks don’t just entertain. They educate, inspire, and reignite forgotten pride.
The Monarchs of Lithuania is an independent authorial project created by Lithuanian-born, California-based designer and illustrator Tautvydas Kaltenis. The series combines historical research, original illustration, playing card design, and visual storytelling.
The story begins with one historic deck.
A second, mythical chapter awaits…
The saga continues with The Legendary Court – coming soon.
The first Court explored the rulers who shaped medieval Lithuania.
The second enters the older and less certain territory of chronicles, legends, and cultural memory.
Where history fades, legend begins.
FOUR KINGS. FOUR LEGENDS.
FOUR FOUNDATIONS.
The Legendary Court launches
September 23.
Discover the beauty of history.
Play with legends, learn through art — from the studio that brings the past to life.
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