Whether played for gambling or as family entertainment, playing cards are one of the most popular pastimes all over the world. Card games range from simple and fun to the ones with complex rules and sophisticated strategies. While all of them originated in a particular country, many have transcended the borders and gained popularity among wider audiences.
With the introduction of the digital era, games like poker, blackjack, baccarat and several others became a staple entertainment offered by most online casinos. But besides the rules and strategies, these games come with interesting stories that surround their existence throughout history.
Let’s dive into some of the most fascinating, educational, and just fun facts about playing cards and various games. Later you can share these facts with your fellow players at the table.
Most accepted theory states that playing cards were probably invented in 9th century China during the Tang dynasty. The early records are open to interpretation, as games described in them don’t really resemble the modern day playing cards.
The first record of using playing cards dates back to 17 July 1294 when two Chinese gamblers were caught by the Department of Punishments in the Ming dynasty.
From China, playing cards spread all across Asia, appearing in Persia, Egypt, and other countries. From there on, it was only a matter of time before they appeared in Europe.
Modern playing cards still largely use what is known as the French suited 52 card deck, though other designs are also popular in various countries, including German, Italian, Spanish and Swiss suits.
First mentions of cards in various European countries mostly date to the 14th century, the majority of them being bans on playing.
Poker was initially played with only 20 cards. Later the 52 card deck came into use so that more people could participate in the game.
You can’t play Texas Hold’em in Texas. Texas is one of the US states with quite strict gambling laws, that’s why playing a poker game in public places is forbidden.
The biggest poker game took place in the UK. 253,692 players gathered in Onchan, Isle of Man to compete for the top prize. The unprecedented number of participants was probably largely due to the entry fee of $1. Held on 5 and 6 October 2015, this event was officially entered in the Guinness World Records.
The longest poker game lasted for over 8 years. Legend has it that a poker game has been continuously going on at Bird Cage Theater, Tombstone, Arizona since 1881 for eight years, five months, and three days. Some say that legends of the American West like Doc Holliday and Wyatt Earp made an appearance during the game.
Phil Hellmuth holds the record for most World Series of Poker Bracelets. Starting from 1989, when he became the youngest player to win a WSOP main event, the legendary player has collected a so far unbeaten number of 16 WSOP bracelets!
Blackjack got its name in Las Vegas. When the popularity of this European card game crossed the ocean, Las Vegas casinos would frequently offer a special promotional bonus of 10 to 1 if your hand consisted of an ace of spades and a black jack (both spades and clubs counted). Players nicknamed the game after this promotion, and it stuck forever, becoming its official name.
The first professional American blackjack player was a woman. Eleanore Dumont, better known under her nickname Madame Moustache, arrived in Nevada City in 1854 and opened a gambling parlour, where she herself worked as a dealer for 21 and other casino games.
Blackjack has one of the lowest house edges among casino games. With the house edge of 0.5%, it is easily understandable why blackjack is such a popular game among casino patrons.
Napoleon Bonaparte was a big fan of the game. After his exile to the island of Elba, the French general is said to have frequently played the French version of blackjack, back then still known as Vingt-et-Un.
The longest game of blackjack lasted for three days. Hielke Klingeler holds the record of the longest marathon blackjack dealing that lasted for 72 hours and took place in Zuidlaren, Netherlands, from 14 to 17 August 2023.
Baccarat comes in three versions. They are called Punto Banco, Chemin de Fer, and Baccarat Banque. While they are all based on the same principle, there are certain differences in the rules and the playing process. If you are playing baccarat in Northern America and several other parts of the world, you will be most likely playing Punto Banco.
The origins of baccarat are disputed. Many believe that it was invented in 15th century Italy, with French soldiers who returned from the Italian Wars bringing it back home. Another version says that it was invented as late as the 19th century.
French nobility were big fans of baccarat. In 19th century France, baccarat was a big hit. The noble class especially enjoyed the game. Initially, they played Baccarat Banque, the oldest version of the game, but later Chemin de Fer emerged and became the most popular version in France. It retains this reputation until today.
Baccarat’s debut in Las Vegas ended in a catastrophe. For the casino, that is. While baccarat was a popular game in the US since the late 19th century, it wasn’t until 1959 that it was first introduced to large casinos in Las Vegas. On 20 November Sands casino and resort opened the first punto banco table in the country. The casino ended up losing an unspeakable $250,000 on the very first night. However, they decided to keep the game in the house, and it proved to be a very wise decision.
A royal scandal in the UK involved a game of baccarat. In 1891, lieutenant colonel William Gordon-Cumming took the family of a prominent nobleman Arthur Wilson to court for slander. During a private game of baccarat at Wilson’s country house, Gordon-Cumming was suspected of cheating. Despite an agreement to never talk about this accident if Gordon-Cumming would never play cards again, the word soon got out. The case got special attention from the public, as Prince of Wales, the future king Edward VII, was present at the game on the night in question and was summoned to the court as a witness.
The deck itself also holds a lot of stories. The design, the number of cards in the deck, the selection of suits — none of these are accidental as it might seem at a first glance.
Here are some of the most interesting facts about playing cards in the deck and their origin.
The deck consists of 52 cards that are divided into four suits. Do these numbers ring familiar? That’s right, there are the same number of weeks in a year as the cards in a deck, and the four suits represent the four seasons.
The math doesn’t end here. If you add up the values of all the cards in a deck, you will get 364. Add in both jokers, and now you have 366 — the number of days in a leap year. Besides, the red joker is considered to represent the sun, while the black joker is the symbol of the moon.
Wait, there is more. Each suit consists of 13 playing cards, from Ace to King. Interestingly, each season has 13 weeks too. And if you count all the face cards in the deck (Jacks, Queens, and Kings), there are 12 of them across all suits, just like there are 12 months in a year.
Continuing the calendar theme, the colours and symbols of suits also have a meaning. For example, two colours, red and black, represent light and dark.
According to the most common theory, each suit represents a certain season: hearts for spring, diamonds for summer, clubs for autumn, and spades for winter.
There is another interpretation which says each suit corresponds to an element of nature: clubs are fire, diamonds are earth, hearts are water, and spades are air.
Suits may also have different meanings in different countries based on the cultural and historical context. For example, a popular interpretation of the suits is based on a class system, where spades represent soldiers (spear), hearts personify priests, clubs embody farmers, and diamonds are the symbol of workers (tiles).
Yet another explanation of the suits deals with more abstract and universal notions: spades stand for peace (olive leaf), hearts represent intelligence and love, clubs are the sign for toughness and luck (clover), while diamonds signify money.
Of course, ever since card games became a favourite pastime for many, numerous designs and variations have been created. But did you know that the faces of the court cards (that is, Jacks, Queens, and Kings) are not just random fantasies of the original artist?
Faces on the French version of the playing deck are believed to represent the following historical or legendary figures:
Kings
Queens
Jacks
Surprising, interesting, and sometimes downright weird facts about playing cards don’t end with the deck and suits. For instance, did you know that mathematicians have calculated the exact number of shuffle combinations a single deck of playing cards can produce? It is 52!, and no, the exclamation mark is not a sign of excitement, but a mathematical symbol in this case. This number is pronounced “52 factorial”.
If theoretical mathematics is not your sphere of interest, so far you are probably unimpressed by this number, so let’s put it in perspective. To calculate 52 factorial, you multiply all numbers from 52 until 1. This will go 52 x 51 x 50 x 49… all the way down to x 4 x 3 x 2 x 1. The final result is:
80,658,175,170,943,878,571,660,636,856,403,766,975,289,505,440,883,277,824,000,000,000,000
Or 80 unvigintillion, 658 vigintillion, 175 novemdecillion, 170 octodecillion, 943 septendecillion, 878 sexdecillion, 571 quindecillion, 660 quattuordecillion, 636 tredecillion, 856 duodecillion, 403 undecillion, 766 decillion, 975 nonillion, 289 octillion, 505 septillion, 440 sextillion, 883 quintillion, 277 quadrillion, and 824 trillion permutations (possible combinations) a single 52-card deck can produce.
But since most people have a hard time visualising numbers beyond billions, it is enough to say that there are more ways to shuffle a standard deck of cards than there are atoms on Earth — and you can imagine how many of those you need to comprise a whole planet and everything on it!
If you have ever played in a casino venue, you have probably noticed how their cards feel different to the touch. This is because the common cards you can buy at a shop still use paper in their manufacture, while casino cards are made of 100% plastic.
The main reason behind this is to prolong the deck’s durability. It is also much more difficult for the players to mark plastic cards in any way in an attempt to cheat.
Another safety measure a lot of large casinos have in place is frequent change of decks. For example, in Las Vegas a single deck of cards is usually discarded after being in use for up to 12 hours. Some can be retired only after one hour of playing! It all depends on how busy the table is, whether the dealer shuffles the cards by hand or with the help of a machine, and several other factors.
If you remember how long playing cards have been around, it comes as no surprise that manufacturers have been experimenting with the design quite a bit. From their size to the artwork and even the materials they are produced from, you will find some curious examples of card decks.
For instance, the smallest cards measure only 5 mm x 3.6 mm! This makes them 250 times smaller than usual playing cards. This deck was created by a London based product designer and engineer Rob Hallifax, beating the previously existing record. It has been officially recognized by the Guinness World Records.
The title of the most expensive deck in the world is divided between the Flemish Hunting Deck and The Luxury Deck. The former is considered to be the only complete set of ordinary playing cards from the 15th century and was sold to the Metropolitan Museum of Arts in New York by its previous owner for $143,000.
The Luxury Deck, produced by the famous Swiss jeweler and watchmaker Shawish is evaluated at the exact same price, but for a different reason. If the Flemish Hunting Deck has a historical value, the Luxury Deck is hand crafted with 18-karat white gold and diamonds, creating an artful masterpiece.
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