Playing cards have a long, rich history throughout the world. In many ways playing cards mirror the history of printing and are frequently works of art in their own right. Precursors of modern playing cards are believed to have originated in China where paper dominoes used for games were documented by the tenth century.
Playing cards are thought to have entered Europe via the Islamic world where suit symbols were added in the form of cups and swords in addition to non-figurative images for court cards. The date that playing cards reached Europe is unknown but one of the first references to them may have been made in Italy in 1299.
In Europe the Islamic non-figurative court cards were replaced with representations of humans at royal courts including kings and queens. Two basic types of playing cards evolved in Europe that are still in use today: the Tarot deck of 22 cards that depicts vices and virtues, and the deck divided into suits, numbered cards, and face cards. The earliest playing cards were made by hand, limiting their use to the upper classes.
There is historical evidence that woodblock printing was originally used to print playing cards. The invention of woodcuts in the fourteenth century enabled mass production and the popularity of playing cards spread rapidly throughout Europe although surviving physical evidence from this early period is very scarce. The French suits were easy to stencil using red and black ink for mass production. The spade, heart, club, and diamond symbols originated in France around 1450 and were quickly adopted elsewhere in Europe.
English playing cards probably originated in the fifteenth century with the earliest designs coming from France. An Act of Parliament from this period provides the first documented evidence of playing cards, prohibiting the import of foreign cards. Very few examples of early English playing cards survive.
In 1628 a group of playing card manufacturers in London formed the “Worshipful Company of Playing Cards" with the support of the King, who at the time was eager to raise money to continue funding his wars. He granted charters of incorporation to a number of trade guilds in exchange for tax revenues. The Worshipful Company was intended to supervise and control the manufacture of playing cards around London and to prevent the import of foreign cards. The company collected tax on every pack sold and paid this to the King. Each pack had to be stamped or marked with the maker’s name after 1712. The duty on playing cards lasted until 1960 when it became uneconomical to maintain.
Playing cards were first produced in the United States around 1800. Americans adopted and invented refinements including indexes (sometimes referred to as “pips", the identifying marks placed in the cards’ corners or borders). These were adopted to eliminate the problem of identification when fanning out the cards. The backs of cards were originally plain but designs were eventually added to prevent card sharps from recognizing cards with any marks or dirt on the backs. Round corners were added to eliminate the problem of wear and tear resulting from square corners.
The use of pictures and artwork on face cards originated from Tarot cards. The introduction of corner indices on American playing cards allowed printers to add pictorial designs to all 52 cards in a deck. Railroads used photographs of scenery in special souvenir packs to promote rail travel during the late nineteenth century.
The Joker card was an American invention that originated around 1870 in the game of Euchre where it was the highest card called the “Best Bower". Euchre was also known as “Juker", and evidence suggests that the Best Bower card become known as the “Juker card" which in turn became known as the “Joker". By the 1880s the image of the Joker was depicted as a clown or a jester. Joker cards were used for social satire and commercial advertising, a practice that continues today.
A large industry in playing cards developed in the nineteenth century producing cards to appeal to the public solely through attractive artwork or topical designs of court-card figures drawn from contemporary, historical, or literary figures. Colorful or unusual editions of playing cards dating from nearly any period are keenly sought by collectors around the world.
Many modern decks of cards carry 52 different pictures of a vast range of subjects including animals, birds, works of art, celebrities, landmarks, and transportation themes. The vast majority of customized decks available today, however, are quickly designed and produced using generic templates. Special editions of playing cards that feature carefully planned and creatively designed original artwork are exceedingly rare and are prized by collectors in the U.S. and abroad as contemporary classics.
One such deck is the “Washington Wine Playing Cards" Collector’s Edition from Raconteurs Press of Seattle, WA. This deck of Bridge-size cards includes 52 standard cards in four suits, two Jokers, and a Washington wine “Facts" card that doubles as a third Joker. Every card features facts or trivia with an original watercolor illustration depicting wine heritage subjects, including beautiful images of wine grape varieties, landscape scenes, and maps of specific wine regions.
The card back design features a woven graphic design with grapes evocative of the Arts and Craft movement of the late nineteenth century. “Washington Wine Playing Cards" is the first of several collectors’ editions of playing cards planned by Raconteurs Press. (ISBN 0-9719258-0-1) For more information, visit www.raconteurs.com
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