A Brief History of the Playing Card
An entry dated– May-79 in the account books of Joanna, Duchess of Brabant reads, “Given to Monsieur and Madame four peters, two forums, value eight and a half moutons, where with to buy a pack of cards”. To familiarize a novice’s awkward finger with what must be one of the most popular and widely known modern online and high-tech casino games, takes a while. The unruly freak show of royal Siamese twins, that you first saw on a dog-eared pack on your grandma’s table, may never be realized in the giddy atmosphere of your first live games, that the glossy polygons have not always been as they seem to have always been.
Central Asia seems to be where the first playing cards originated from. A 10th or 11th century record of paper dominoes is the first known reference to cards. It is printed to represent all of the 21 combinations of a pair of dice, used in other games in China. Artifacts from the 9th century China are the earliest found. The first use of straight writing paper instead of paper rolls is associated by scholars with the first straight-sheet paper cards and the earliest book printing.
Egyptian Mamelukes most likely introduced playing cards in quite modern form to the Europeans in the late–th century. There were 52 cards in the typical Mameluke deck, four suits (polo sticks, coins, swords, and cups) and three court cards with, rather than persons, depicted abstracted design. At the time, only wealthy Europeans could afford the cards which were hand-made. Woodcuts (used to decorate fabrics) were then applied to paper in a new technique which was introduced around–00 and mass production followed suit. There are records of professional card makers dating back to the period between–18 and–50. Card production is now one of the most flourishing world-wide industries.
The number and style of suits in 15th century playing cards varied: some decks had five suits, and hearts, bells, leaves, and acorns were the standard suits in Germany, still used today in Southern Germany for a distinctive set of card games. From my own childhood, besides the now standard deck, I remember the German suits which I much preferred because of their relative pictorial richness, particularly the golden nut and greenish cupule of the acorn suit: perhaps a gift imported into Asia, Kazakhstan from German relatives.
If the kings were the highest card in the suit in early games, by the–th century the “Ace” (stemming from the Latin for the lowest unit of currency, as) began to acquire the ability to turn highest card, leaving the Two as lowest. This was an especially popular mode during the French Revolution when it was vital that the lower classes rise above royalty. A revolutionary would likewise disdain to play cards with Kings and Queens, preferring the innovative design of Liberties, Equalities, and Fraternities, but the classic design returned with the coming of Napoleon to power.
A reversible double image in court cards was introduced in the’th century. The earliest of such designs was American, though the invention is attributed to a French card maker of the late’th century whose idea was prohibited by the French government. The purpose was to prevent players from reversing their court cards during a session, thus in part revealing their hands to even not the most observant of opponents.
The author is a successful limit cash game player and has played poker full time since 2005. He currently plays poker and receives Rakeback at Absolute Poker.
No comments yet.