Hi, my name is Michael Ace Russo. I have been doing comedy magic at private parties and restaurants for over 15, (almost 20) years. There are many things that I have learned, and one of them is that most people don’t know the History of Playing Cards. I know you are thinking, “What does that have to do with Comedy Magic?” Well, nothing, but it is interesting. If you want to know about my Comedy Magic Act, then please go to my website by either clicking Comedy Magic Act under the Blogroll that is on the right of this page or click on About next to Home at the top of this article. Don’t overlook this series of articles. You may find them important to you.
Chapter 1 Brief History of Playing Cards
Mystery still surrounds the origin of playing cards. Nobody knows exactly when or where they started. Some people believe they began in China, where paper was invented, and entered Europe from the Islamic Empire. However, most historians believe differently.
Evidence suggests that the Mamlukes of Egypt invented playing cards either in the 12th or 13th century. Their pack or deck consisted of 52 cards. The suits were swords, polo-sticks, cups, and coins. Numerals ranged from one to ten. There were three court cards supposedly called the King, Deputy King, and Under-Deputy. Really, these cards had intricate designs like those on tapestries rather than pictures of people.
In the late fourteenth century, playing cards reached Europe coming by way of either Spain or Italy. Since Venice was the tradesman’s entrance to medieval Europe, and Italian cards more closely resemble the Mamlukes’ deck; it is most likely that playing cards came through Italy first.
Once in Europe, variations on the basic idea began to blossom, and playing card use expanded from game play to include instruction, propaganda, and amusement. Few decks were available at that time. Production was slow, requiring skilled artists to hand-paint each card. This process made a deck of cards expensive, limiting their use mainly to the upper class and royalty. Lower class people were exposed to playing cards through hand-me-down decks thrown out by the upper classes.
At the beginning of the fifteenth century, card making swiftly became a growth industry with France, Germany, and Switzerland as the principal manufacturing centers. By 1420, card-makers were producing decks by the thousands, first by stencil, then by woodblock, and eventually by metal engraving. Still, at that time, there were no standardized versions of national and regional decks for game play. Designs changed frequently depending on card-makers’ marketing strategies. Near the end of the 1400’s, standardized decks began to appear, mainly because they were cheaper and quicker to produce. Also, more and more people became experienced at card play and games. As a result, the card player was born, and novelty decks proved a distraction to the games, thereby, falling into disfavor.
Ultimately, five major types of national suit systems became common throughout Europe. They are the Italian, Spanish, German, Swiss, and French-suited cards. Amazingly, these national decks of cards have changed little over the centuries. Italian and Spanish-suited cards are called Latin-suited cards because they are very similar in design. The Italian-suited deck is made-up of 40 cards with the suits being Spade (Swords), Coppe (Cups), Denari (Coins), and Bastoni (Batons). Italian swords are curved and interlaced, whereas the Spanish swords are straight and separate from each other. Also, the Italian batons are symmetrically carved sticks, as opposed to the barbaric looking Spanish clubs that look like homemade billy clubs freshly chopped from a tree. Italian court card names are Re (King), Cavallo (Cavalier), and Fante (Foot soldier). There are many types of Italian-suited decks in Italy, but the most popular is the Napoletane pattern.
Spanish-suited decks contain either 40 or 48 cards. The 40-card deck is the most preferred. Its suits are Swords (Espadas), Cups (Copas), Coins (Oros), and Clubs (Bastos). The numbered cards go from one, not an ace, to seven. The court cards also have numbers on them instead of letters. The Rey (King) is 12, who is always pictured as standing, as opposed to usually being seated on the Italian-suited cards. Caballo, the horseman, is 11, and the male servant named Sota is 10. The One of Coins usually bears the maker’s name and address. There are many unique designs and patterns of Spanish cards that are used throughout Spain, lower France, Morocco, southern Italy, and South and Central America.
Soldiers returning from war in Italy probably brought cards to Germany, and entrepreneurs were quick to capitalize on the new product. By 1440, German card-makers reigned supreme producing enormous quantities and exporting them throughout Europe. What was the Germans’ secret? They were responsible for the introduction of wood engraving, which revolutionized the art of card making.
The first German decks consisted of 48 cards, three picture cards and nine numbered cards. There were no aces. The two was the highest valued card, followed by the picture cards. German card-makers eventually settled on a 32-card deck with suits of bells, acorns, leaves (a.k.a. green), and hearts (a.k.a. red). The court cards have a military character being all-male and designated Konig (King), Ober (Over-Officer), and Unter (Under-Officer). The new numerals are seven to ten inclusive and an ace (As). German-suited cards appear in a variety of regional patterns.
Today, German manufacturers produce both the traditional German-suited cards and a French-suited motif with German names for the King, Queen, and Jack. They are Konig, Dame, and Bube or Bower, respectively.
Swiss-suited cards closely resemble German cards. The suits are acorns, flowers (also known as roses), bells, and shields. There are 36 cards in a deck. Court cards are Konig, Over, and Under. Numerals range from six to ten and also include an ace. Banner is the name given to the ten because a banner or flag is printed on the card instead of ten separate suit marks. The appropriate suit mark is on this banner. Swiss-suited cards are used primarily for a game called Jasskarten, more commonly known as Jass.
During the late 15th and early 16th centuries, France surpassed Germany as the top producer and exporter of playing cards. Simplicity of the suit marks was the reason. French-suited cards are, by far, the greatest contribution to card history. Their design is the one that is the most familiar to Americans and people throughout the world. What distinguishes it from all others are the suit marks of Clubs, Hearts, Spades, and Diamonds. The French call them Coeur (Hearts), Trèfle (Clubs or clover-leafs), Pique (Pikes or Spades), and Carreau (Diamonds or paving-tiles). Each suit has three court cards, a Roi (King), Dame (Queen), and a male servant called the Valet (Jack). Numerals run from one to ten. The one has since been changed to the ace and often ranks higher than the King. The total number of cards in a deck equals 52. The Paris pattern is France’s national design.
In the mid-15th century, the British adopted the now defunct French-suited design made by card-makers in Rouen, France. They accepted the design, but not all the names for the suits or court cards. For the suits, they made-up the name Diamonds; they OK’d the Italian name for Spades; they chose Hearts, the English translation of the French word; and decided on Clubs, the equivalent of the Spain’s Bastos. They recognized the translation for the French King and Jack, but created the Queen. In cards, the Queen is unique only to the English language; most other countries prefer La Dame, the Lady.1 These cards spread worldwide during Britain’s period of colonization. American card manufacturers, which now dominate the world, were heavily influenced by Britain’s design. The British-American design will be referred to as the International deck.
The above constitutes the original national suit systems. These are the kind our immigrant ancestors knew in their homelands. Today, they are still used in European card games and are extremely popular. There are many different, often beautifully colored, regional patterns and designs influenced by the customs and traditions of a particular area. Traditional card games played with national or regional cards are akin to folk art such as dance, ballads, and legends. Although the names and rules of a game may vary to fit each local’s heritage, they all are strangely the same, giving credence to the phrase, “everywhere different, yet everywhere the same.”
