by There are many different types of playing cards. Some are more stylish than others, with fancy tuck boxes and heavily customized faces and pips. Others are more functional, with clearly recognizable suits and indices.
A standard deck has 52 cards, split into four suits. Each suit has 13 cards.
Decks
Many different types of decks of playing cards have been produced over the centuries. Most modern cards use a standard design, with one or more Jokers and a complement of 52 cards divided into four suits of 13 ranks. In addition, most commercial decks of playing cards include two or three “wild” or “reversed” cards that are different from the normal cards in the deck.
The most common card designs, which are used throughout much of the world today, originated in France and spread to other European countries. Earlier cards had a variety of suits and deck sizes, but the French were able to develop techniques for printing playing cards more quickly than other parts of Europe, so they gained a dominant position.
Early cards were hand-painted, and their production was a luxury for the upper classes. An account book of King Charles VI in the 1470s notes a payment for 56 sols parisiens (“for the divertissement of the king”) for a pack of painted cards.
The most famous brand of playing cards is probably Bicycle, which has been in business for over a century and is renowned for its quality and ease of shuffle. However, there are other manufacturers that produce top-quality cards. Copag, for example, makes cards from extra-durable thermoplastic (also known as polyvinyl chloride or PVC) that are smooth-as-butter to shuffle and have beautiful illustrations.
Games
Card games are a form of gambling that requires skill. They can be played by one or more players and include a variety of different rules and game variants. Some are purely luck-based while others require the player to acquire and manage a deck of cards in order to win. There are also many strategy games that involve collecting cards and battling against other players in special arenas. These are called trading card games. Examples of these include Hearthstone, Elder Scrolls: Legends, HEX: Shards of Fate, Shadowverse, Magic: The Gathering, and Pokemon Trading Card Game.
Almost every country in the world claims to have invented playing cards, with the Chinese claiming that their yezi ge (game of leaves) is among the oldest. However, most of the early games that used cards were simple gambles or trick-taking games that did not require much skill or thought. It was not until the late 1300s that the idea of cards as a social and intellectual pursuit developed.
Cards were first introduced to Europe in the 1370s, probably as imports from the Islamic Mamluk dynasty of Egypt. Initially, European cards were hand-painted and therefore very expensive. In 1392, the account book of Charles VI of France records payment for Jacquemin Gringonneur to paint three sets or packs of cards “pour le divertissement du roy.” As the cards spread along inland European trade routes, they became a more affordable pastime.
Collectibles
Playing cards are available in a variety of designs and materials. Some are produced to be used for card tricks or other activities, while others are made to enhance the look of a room or table. Many collectors focus on specific designs of playing cards. They might collect singles, such as unique card backs or jokers, or entire sets of a particular brand or design. The popularity of card tricks and cardistry also means that some people collect decks specifically designed for those purposes.
The history of playing cards is a fascinating subject. The earliest cards were hand-painted and expensive, making them luxury items for the rich. A woodcut from 1423 in the collection of King Charles VI records a payment to Jacquemin Gringonneur for painting a deck of cards for him “pour le divertissement du roy.” Cards spread along inland European trade routes and became a popular pastime among the upper classes. They were often painted as political statements, such as the trefle (clover) and the carreaux (tiles), which replaced the Latin suits of diamonds, clubs, and hearts in France around 1480.
Modern playing cards usually have indices in the corners or edges that help distinguish the faces from each other. These indices are generally lettered A, K, Q, and J for the Ace, King, Queen, and Jack cards. They may also include a number or symbol for the court cards. Some manufacturers use a raised surface for the indices, which adds to the visual appeal of a pack.
Rules
Playing cards are used in a variety of games. The game rules depend on the number of suits, the pips and their arrangement, and other features such as indices and finishing touches. Some decks are printed with different designs or symbols, such as a tarot deck or the famous Bicycle brand. They are also used as decorative items, artistic works, educational tools or branded accessories.
The earliest playing cards were executed by hand, but they quickly became mass-produced using woodcuts. Woodcut printing was initially developed for use on fabric, and the technique was transferred to paper around 1400, a short time after the first recorded manufacture of paper in Christian Europe. This was followed by the invention of reversible cards, and eventually led to the introduction of standard patterns of card suits and ranks.
Many regional and national variations of cards exist, and even within suits there are many different ways of arranging the pips. Some of these are based on historical traditions, while others are created by the individual manufacturers. The only card that does not belong to any particular pattern is the joker, whose appearance varies from publisher to publisher.
The origin of the playing card is not entirely clear, but it seems likely that it originated in Asia. It has since spread to many countries and regions, where it is still widely played. The standard American poker-sized deck, with four suits and thirteen cards in each suit, is the most popular type of playing card.
