Monday 3 September 2012

Things You Should Know About Playing Cards

By Abhay Sevinaz


There is more to playing cards than meets the eye. While others see it as something that can be done for fun, others think of it just as a tool to pass the time with. But what else do we know about playing cards?

The playing cards now a days could either be made from special heavy paper that is like a thin cardboard, or with a plastic coating. Some are even made from pure plastic. Typically sized to fit the palm of the hand when playing, each playing card has one side with a unique distinguishing mark while the other side, the back, has identical designs for that particular deck. One deck of playing cards is composed of 52 playing cards, in four different suits: spades, hearts, diamonds, and clubs.

There are historical evidences that playing cards originated in ancient China during the Tang Dynasty in the 9th century. The first card games were also originated by the Chinese during that same time. It wasn't until the Ming Dynasty when the designs on the cards took the form of book characters from novels that were famous during that era.

It wasn't until the 14th century when playing cards finally made its way to Europe, particularly from 1377. Drawing from Egyptian influences, the deck of cards, known at the time as Mameluke deck, had 52 cards showing abstract designs and indicating the names of military officers. The four suits in the deck include polo sticks, coins, swords, and cups.

The evolution also applied to the technology or tools used in making these cards. The printed woodcut decks were finally used in the 15th century. Soon, in the 1430s, engraving was also incorporated in the manufacture of these cards.

It was in France in 1480 when the familiar suits ' spades, hearts, diamonds and clubs ' were introduced. Images of European royalty were also incorporated into the design, with the King, Queen, and Jack. Even now, we see these designs in our modern playing cards.

It is a fact that in some places, their card games are unique and all their own. As a result, they need decks of cards that fit those games. In Italy, Italian regional games such as Scopa or Briscola requires cards that only has 40 pieces. There are other countries who remain traditional even in their playing cards and the designs. For example, Spain's traditional deck is still so rooted in tradition that even its suit symbols are still in Latin.

Thanks to modern technology, anyone can also have their own personalized deck of playing cards. Random images and even personal photographs can now be used on the playing cards instead of the usual designs. You will definitely have more fun playing this way.

It is interesting to see the many games you could do with playing cards. There are a lot of card games that you can play so you will never be bored. Customizing the design will make the whole card playing experience more fun.




About the Author:



No comments:

Post a Comment