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This article examines designs and depictions of Tenshō karuta, the Latin/Italo-Portuguese-patterned playing cards introduced to Japan between the mid-sixteenth century and the Tenshō era (1573-1592). In the early Edo period (1603-1868) the elaborate designs of these playing cards were gradually simplified into expressive and abstract images and were eventually localized, serving as a basis for a variety of playing cards in the modern era. While such changes can be attributed in part to the producers’ motivation for a more economical mode of production of card games, this study analyzes the reinterpretation and adaptation of images using a semiotic approach. It presents a brief visual history of Tenshō karuta, demonstrating an exemplary case of the localization of foreign images and the creation of meaning in early modern Japan.