The Origins of Playing Cards

Concise History of Playing-cards

This section is an on-line tutorial covering the early history of playing-cards. You will learn about the following topics:

1. Where did playing-cards come from?

2. The Cultural Context

3. Card Games

4. Other uses besides Games

5. How did Suit Systems evolve?

6. What did the earliest European cards look like?

7. Different methods of production

8. Sources of imagery

9. The Renaissance influence

10. Standard National Patterns

11. History of Blackjack

12. History of Online Casinos

You can either follow the links to or go directly to the page(s) you are interested in by clicking the links above.

At the end there will be a quiz to consolidate your knowledge. If you're looking to play card games online I recommend Ladbrokes, one of the largest UK sportsbooks and online casinos.

Early References