The Origins of Playing Cards
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The RenaissanceWith the onset of the Renaissance in Italy, the new spirit of Humanism was spreading through Europe bringing a change of form and direction. This did not reach certain parts of Europe until the high and late Renaissance in the 16th century. Artists were commissioned to paint anything from wall frescoes through Books of Hours to illuminated playing cards, thereby exhibiting the taste and cultivation of the patron. In some cases the imagery had an esoteric, Christian, instructional or philosophical content, whilst in other cases it was based upon popular culture, or else merely conventional or adorned with the owner's heraldic devices. Left: Visconti tarocchi playing card, Milan, Italy, c.1445. Click here to see more. Download article about Origins of Imagery in
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