Playing Cards

The Card Players

Paul Cezanne

1895

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There is nothing I enjoy more than playing a game of cards. This prompted me to do some research and find out more about their origins. Some interesting facts emerged.

A form of playing cards were known of in China as early as the 9th century though not as we know them today. It is likely that the precursor of modern cards arrived in England from Egypt in the late 1300s, by which time they had already assumed a form very close to that used today.

The use of cards spread rapidly throughout Europe during the late 14th century. There is documentary evidence that cards were being used in Spain, Switzerland, Florence and Paris. The earliest cards were made and painted by hand. Printed woodcut decks soon followed, these were also painted by hand originally, but later the use of stencils were employed. Eventually, card, plastic and even linen were used in the manufacture of cards that we use today. Originally the four suits were represented by many different symbols depending on the country where they were being used. The four suits - spades, hearts, diamonds and clubs - originated in France around 1480. Also, in the 15th century Europeans changed the court cards to represent royalty. In earlier times the equivalent 'king' card was always the highest value card, the 'ace' being only one in value. Eventually, the ace was given more significance and was sometimes valued as the highest card in the deck as well as having a value of only one. In the 19th century artists incorporated the pips of the no-face cards into an artistic design and these were known as 'transformation playing cards.

Popular legend holds that cards are based on typical numerological elements. For example, the four suits were represented by the four seasons. 13 cards per suit are the 13 phases of the lunar

cycle, black and red are for day and night, the fifty two playing cards in the deck symbolizes the number of weeks in a year, and finally if the value of each card is added up and a one is added, generally explained away as being for a single joker, the result is 365, the number of days in a year. If the other joker is added, that makes 366 days, the number of days in a leap year. Makes you think doesn't it!