16th century cards discovered in Peru
Fragments of playing cards and 2 dice were unearthed in a 16th century rubbish tip adjacent to a Spanish house in the lower Rimac Valley in Peru, providing evidence of games played by early Spanish settlers.
16th Century Spanish Playing Cards discovered in Archaeological Dig in Peru
33 fragments of playing cards and 2 dice were unearthed in a 16th century rubbish tip adjacent to a Spanish house in the lower Rimac Valley in Peru, providing evidence of games played by early Spanish settlers. In amongst the rubbish associated with the cards there was also a paper document dated 1516.
The cards are from more than one pack, and fall into two groups. The first group comprises cards of the archaic Spanish-suited "Dragon" type of pack, whilst the remaining cards are of a different early Spanish-suited pattern. Together these cards provide stunning evidence of early Spanish playing card production exported to Central and South American countries very soon after the 'discovery' of the New World.
References
Cárdenas Martin, Mercedes: Dados y Naipes del Siglo XVI en una Huaca del Valle del Rimac, Peru, Boletín de Lima Vol.XXI, No.116 (1999) pp.42-60.
By Simon Wintle
Member since February 01, 1996
Founder and editor of the World of Playing Cards since 1996. He is a former committee member of the IPCS and was graphics editor of The Playing-Card journal for many years. He has lived at various times in Chile, England and Wales and is currently living in Extremadura, Spain. Simon's first limited edition pack of playing cards was a replica of a seventeenth century traditional English pack, which he produced from woodblocks and stencils.
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