Gourt > Recreation > Collecting > Toys > Games > Playing Cards (1)
A playing card is a typically hand-sized piece of heavy paper or thin plastic used for playing card games. A complete set of cards is a pack or deck. Playing cards are often used as props in magic tricks, as well as occult practices such as cartomancy, and a number of card games involve (or can be used to support) gambling. As a result, their use sometimes meets with disapproval from some religious groups (such as a minority of conservative Christians). They are also a popular collectible (as distinct from the cards made specifically for collectible trading card games). Specialty and novelty decks are commonly produced for collectors, often with political, cultural, or educational themes. One side of each card (the front or face) carries markings that distinguish it from the others and determine its use under the rules of the particular game being played, while the other side (the back) is identical for all cards, usually a plain color or abstract design. In most games, the cards are assembled into a deck (or pack), and their order is randomized by a procedure called shuffling to provide an element of chance in the game.
History
Early history
The origin of playing cards is obscure, but it is almost certain that they began in China after the invention of paper. Ancient Chinese "money cards" have four "suits": coins (or cash), strings of coins (which may have been misinterpreted as sticks from crude drawings), myriads of strings, and tens of myriads. These were represented by ideograms, with numerals of 2–9 in the first three suits and numerals 1–9 in the "tens of myriads". Wilkinson suggests in The Chinese origin of playing cards that the first cards may have been actual paper currency which were both the tools of gaming and the stakes being played for. The designs on modern Mahjong tiles and dominoes likely evolved from those earliest playing cards. The Chinese word pái (牌) is used to describe both paper cards and gaming tiles. An Indian origin for playing cards has been suggested by the resemblance of symbols on some early European decks (traditional Sicilian cards, for example) to the ring, sword, cup, and baton classically depicted in the four hands of Indian statues. This is an area that still needs research. The time and manner of the introduction of cards into Europe are matters of dispute. The 38th canon of the council of Worcester (1240) is often quoted as evidence of cards having been known in England in the middle of the 13th century; but the games de rege et regina there mentioned are now thought to more likely have been chess. If cards were generally known in Europe as early as 1278, it is very remarkable that Petrarch, in his work De remediis utriusque fortunae that treats gaming, never once mentions them. Boccaccio, Chaucer and other writers of that time specifically refer to various games, but there is not a single passage in their works that can be fairly construed to refer to cards. Passages have been quoted from various works, of or relative to this period, but modern research leads to the supposition that the word rendered cards has often been mistranslated or interpolated.It is likely that the ancestors of modern cards arrived in Europe from the Mamelukes of Egypt in the late 1300s, by which time they had already assumed a form very close to those in use today. In particular, the Mameluke deck contained 52 cards comprising four "suits": polo sticks, coins, swords, and cups. Each suit contained ten "spot" cards (cards identified by the number of suit symbols or "pips" they show) and three "court" cards named malik (King), nā'ib malik (Viceroy or Deputy King), and thānī nā'ib (Second or Under-Deputy). The Mameluke court cards showed abstract designs not depicting persons (at least not in any surviving specimens) though they did bear the names of military officers. A complete pack of Mameluke playing cards was discovered by L.A. Mayer in the Topkapi Sarayi Museum, Istanbul, in 1939 *; this particular complete pack was not made before 1400, but the complete deck allowed matching to a private fragment dated to the twelfth or thirteenth century. There is some evidence to suggest that this deck may have evolved from an earlier 48-card deck that had only two court cards per suit, and some further evidence to suggest that earlier Chinese cards brought to Europe may have travelled to Persia, which then influenced the Mameluke and other Egyptian cards of the time before their reappearance in Europe.
More on [ Playing card ]
Toys :: Antiques and Collectibles
Drinking spiced cider and playing cards :)
blairperry (blairperry) Mon, 21 Dec 2009 03:05:57 -0000
Drinking spiced cider and playing cards :)
Stamp Act, all printed materials are taxed, newspapers, pamphlets, bills, legal documents, licenses, almanacs, dice and playing cards
PatrioticNews (Patriotic Passion) Mon, 21 Dec 2009 03:05:19 -0000
Stamp Act, all printed materials are taxed, newspapers, pamphlets, bills, legal documents, licenses, almanacs, dice and playing cards
OMGGG GGOOOOD TIMES PLAYING FAMILY CARDS!!!
ytcool712 (Ya-Ting Chang) Mon, 21 Dec 2009 02:57:05 -0000
OMGGG GGOOOOD TIMES PLAYING FAMILY CARDS!!!
Sitting at work playing cards with @hoosierfox
Swirrely (Jessica) Mon, 21 Dec 2009 02:53:52 -0000
Sitting at work playing cards with @hoosierfox
Playing cards with L&L â at L&L's House http://gowal.la/s/vy1
hookedonyarn (Nic-e Hemsley) Mon, 21 Dec 2009 02:39:33 -0000
Playing cards with L&L — at L&L's House http://gowal.la/s/vy1
@MalachaiSamuels - - I first learned how to do psychic readings using regular playing cards vs Tarot decks. Love the idea of elf cards! â¥
Carla_Baron (*Psychic*Carla Baron) Mon, 21 Dec 2009 02:24:34 -0000
@MalachaiSamuels - - I first learned how to do psychic readings using regular playing cards vs Tarot decks. Love the idea of elf cards! ♥
Bob Lancaster Gallery of Unusual Playing Cards - A selection of unusual playing cards, especially those with non-standard Jacks, Queens and Kings.
Meta Description: [ A selection of unusual playing cards ]
Alta Carta - Forum for trading playing cards of interest to collectors, as well as information about playing cards.
Meta Description: [ Everything about Playing Cards: basic knowledge, research, trade platform ]
Andy's Playing Cards - An interesting site with numerous illustrations of playing cards, links, and an article on the history of playing cards.
Meta Description: [ Collectable playing cards ]
Bicycle Playing Cards - Informative article on Bicycle playing cards, particularly Rider Back and other designs used by the United States Playing Card Company.
Meta Description: [ Bicycle Playing Cards are one of the oldest - they've been around since 1885 - and most recognizable brands of playing cards sold in the United States. They are currently manufactured by the United States Playing Card Company, and are sold on the internet by Wooden Horse Books. ]
Card Art - Various images of collectible playing cards.
Chris's Jokers - Gallery of playing card jokers, features a collection of French Special Edition cards.
dotpattern - playing cards gallery - Picture galleries featuring a joker collection, playing cards, trading cards and phone cards, with information and links about collecting.
Meta Description: [ The card gallery at dotpattern features a joker collection, playing cards, trading cards and phone cards, with information and collecting supplies. ]
Encyclopedia of Playing Cards - A continually growing listing of playing cards, with copyright dates, manufacturers and other useful information.
Meta Description: [ A useful and continually growing catalogue of playing cards arranged by category. ]
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FAQ for Playing-Cards - Answers to frequently asked questions about playing cards.
Gunther Anderson's Playing Card Collection - Occasionally updated galleries of themed decks of cards, with scanned cards and commentary.
Meta Description: [ The front page of the current issue of my playing cards mini magazine. ]
Huub's House of Jokers - Galleries of a personal collection, duplicates for swapping and links to other joker collectors.
JohnyJollyJoker - 27 pages of duplicate jokers to swap, guestbook, gallery of old rare cards.
Jokers Palace - Playing card jokers from a collector in the Netherlands. Includes registry of collectors.
Meta Description: [ playing-cards joker collecting ]
Knave of Delaware - Useful information on setting up a playing card collection database.
Meta Description: [ Home page of a playing card collector. Suggestions for a playing card database. ]
MGM Joker KG - Playing Cards for Collectors - A German manufacturer of playing cards specifically targeted to collectors.
Meta Description: [ MGM Joker KG, Stiglmaierplatz 2, D - 80333 Muenchen - Playing Cards for Collectors ]
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Museums with Collections of Playing-Cards - A text list with hyperlinks to museums around the world that have historically interesting collections of playing cards, arranged by country.
Names on Playing Cards - Article gives the names of persons traditionally linked with the court card images in a deck of playing cards.
Meta Description: [ List of persons who are supposed to be represented on standard playing cards. ]
Old German Playing Cards - Research related to 15th and 16th century playing card decks of German origin.
Meta Description: [ History of Tarot in 15th century. Research for the Origin of Tarot, Tarocchi or Trionfi and old playing cards ]
Playing Card Ephemera - Information pertaining to playing card collecting from two widely-recognized collectors.
The Playing Card - An informative site about playing card history, terms, and games.
World of Playing Cards - Everything about playing cards, their history, lore, collecting, manufacture, and design.
Meta Description: [ The World of Playing Cards© and The English Playing Card Society website ]
World Web Playing Cards Museum - Individual effort features a gallery of playing cards with information about games, collecting, and a message board.
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