Vintage French Poker Dice

Here's a somewhat unusual set of vintage poker dice. What makes this set of dice unusual is the presence of the joker along with the four suits on the aces. Normally, poker dice come in a set of five, without a joker and all five aces bearing the same suit, usually spades or clubs. Naturally, the joker is used as a wild card and changes the odds, which in turn changes the rank structure. This probably makes the game more exciting for gamblers. I would imagine this set of dice was probably originally sold with an instruction leaflet, but unfortunately I was unable to confirm that.


These dice were made in France, but I am not sure what the name of the manufacturer was or when the dice were made. The cardboard box opens like a matchbox and bottom of the drawer has a hand written inscription that reads, "M. BelPière 12 Rue Tournefort Paris V", meaning, "Mr. BelPière, 12 Tournefort Street, Paris, 5th arrondissement (administrative district)." But, was Mr. BelPière the maker, or did this set of dice just belong to him? I do not know. I also do not know why the letter "p" in BelPière is capitalized.