I. Hardy Cards Package |
Early American
Playing Cards |
C. W. Illuminated
Playing
Cards |
1864 Highlanders
Poker Cards
L. I. Cohen |
American Cards |
Wood Poker Chips |
Clay Poker Chips |
Confederate Generals
Playing Cards, 1863 |
Union Generals
Playing Cards, 1863 |
Union & Confederate
Military Leaders |
Native American Cards, 1 |
Native American Cards, 2 |
Buffalo Soldiers Cards |
I. Hardy Playing Cards, Period style paper wrapper secured with string.
Authentic style cards with no numbers. I. Hardy, Maker. Rev War Design, Correct for Civil War usage.
Early American Playing Cards, These are the same cards as the I. Hardy
playing cards, except without the period style paper wrapper secured with string. Authentic
style cards with no numbers. Rev War Design, Correct for Civil War usage by Historical Folk Toys.
Illuminated Card Deck, This reproduction of a Civil War-era deck is
beautifully crafted with gold detail embellishing every card.In the style of the times, this deck
includes full-length, single-ended court figures, square corners and traditional non-indexed styling.
Originally produced by L. I. Cohen, New York. Correct for the American Civil War period.
1864 Poker Card Deck, Reproduction of a Civil War era poker deck with
full-length, single-ended court figures. Box reproduced with original tax stamps showing hand
cancellation June 2, 1864. Correct for the American Civil War period.
American Playing Cards, Caleb Bartlett. Authentic style cards with no
numbers. Very colorful deck. Pre-Civil War but will work nicely. The face cards are Kings are
American Presidents, Jacks are Famous Indians, and Queens are Allegorical. Correct for the
American Civil War period.
Confederate Generals Playing Cards, Facsimile reproduction of playing
cards originally published in 1863 by M. Nelson, New York. Each card face features an engraved
portrait of a general or statesman of the Civil War Era. Each deck contains 54 cards.
Union Generals Playing Cards, Facsimile reproduction of playing cards
originally published in 1863 by M. Nelson, New York. Each card face features an engraved portrait
of a general or statesman. Each deck contains 54 cards.
Union & Confederate Military Leaders Playing Cards, Facsimile
reproduction of playing cards originally published in 1863 by M. Nelson, New York. This double
deck set (54 cards per deck) features an engraved portrait of a different general or statesman on
each card. Contains Union and Confederate Generals Playing Card Decks.
Native American Card Decks, Not a reproduction decks, but very
interesting. Each deck contains a collection of 55 cards with full color portraits of Native
Americans painted during the early 19th century. Two sets are available.
Buffalo Soldiers Card Deck, Not a reproduction decks, but very
interesting. The black regiments, which came into being in 1866, quickly earned the respect of
both fellow servicemen and opponents. This beautifully illustrated deck of 54 cards pays homage
to those leaders whose contributions helped change the face of American. 1866-present including
Colin Powell.
Playing Cards
- Check, by clicking, the box for each item and size wanted.
- Update the quantity if you want more than 1.
- When done selecting any/all items, click the "Put these items in my cart!" button.
|
|
|
|
Historical Background: Playing cards were invented during the 12th century in China. These early cards were probably paper dominoes
since the official Chinese record for the invention of paper was 105 A.D. Sir William Henry Wilkinson, a British sinologist, published an article entitled
"Chinese Origin of European Playing Cards" in the American Anthropologist in 1895. This historic paper compares Chinese and European decks of playing cards
and includes a wealth of information. From China, playing cards may have spread to Venice, Italy, via Marco Polo or his father.
From Venice, cards made their way to other European countries. There are many mentions of cards from Ulm, Germany, in the late 1300s and
early 1400s. Even though no actual card packs exist from this time, it is certain that woodcuts would have been used in their production by this time. The
invention of the removeable-type printing press made mass production of playing cards possible around 1440.
Playing cards also became very popular for gambling. Preachers denounced card playing and the conduct that followed "poor losers" who
exhibited bad behavior and emotional outbursts. It was declared immoral and prohibitions sprang up in many cities. Ulm, Germany, had a prohibition against
card playing in 1397. Other prohibitions and ordinances against card playing occurred in Paris, France, in 1377; St. Gallen, Switzerland, in 1379; Lille,
France, in 1382; Barcelona, Spain, in 1382; and, again, in Paris, France, in 1397 forbidding working people to play cards on working days.
Some card decks from China featured only three "suits." The four suits used in present-day playing cards (spades, hearts, diamonds &
clubs) are derived from the Middle Ages where the Tarot deck reflected the societies of Medieval times. The king ruled a world in which there were four
classes: the church, military, merchants, and farmers. These four classes were featured as suits on the cards in the forms of cups (the church), swords
(military), pentacles or five-pointed stars (merchants), and batons (farmers). When card popularity spread throughout Europe and, particularly, into Germany
during the 15th century, the cups became hearts, the swords became spades, the pentacles became diamonds, and the batons became clubs.
English playing cards from the 15th century probably evolved from France. The first documentation of cards in England is from an Act of
Parliament (3 Edw. IV.c.4) in which domestic card makers petitioned against the importing of foreign cards. At this point, cards had plain backs, square
corners, no numbers in the corners, and the face cards were single ended.
It is thought that Christopher Columbus' expedition brought playing cards to what is now Latin America. Cards were later brought to the
New World by Jamestown settlers. In the American colonies, Puritan children were not allowed to play cards and the sale of cards was prohibited in their
communities. In the Puritan Colony Laws of 1656, children and servants were to be "publickly whipt" for second offenses of playing cards. The county records
of Plymouth, Massachusetts, show that in 1633 two heathens were fined two pounds each for card playing. The colonists did, however, enjoy playing cards. When
Captain James Cook returned from England to Jamestown, Virginia, he found the colonists starving, but still playing with cards!
Card designs featuring the King, Queen, Jack, and the "pip" cards (cards without numbers from two to ten) did not change much from the
15th to 19th centuries. During the mid-19th century, face cards became double-headed and the card values appeared in the left corners to allow greater ease in
reading fanned cards. Players would also not want their opponents to know whether they had a face card by turning these cards right side up. Doubled-headed
face cards helped players "protect the hands" or not "tip their hand" to another player.
Up until 1850, most playing cards had plain backs. Because this plain side could become soiled or "marked" and used for cheating, design
patterns began to appear on the backs of cards. In some American cities further inland, this type of card deck with plain backs was used longer than 1850
simply because it took a while for the other cards to migrate to western states and territories. After cards were played with a number of times, the square
corners rubbed off and, so, rounded corners became the new standard. After all, cards were made from only heavy paper then and did not have the plastic-coated
finish we see on today's cards. Playing Cards are the basis for some parlor games (parlour games)
Native Americans also made their own cards, but not out of paper. They used animal hides and decorated each card individually. A set of
North American Indian cards is displayed in the National Museum in Washington, D.C.
Fun Fact: The joker was invented because of a game called Eucher, which needed one more high card. Card manufacturers would add a blank
card called the "Eucher card" in each deck. The word was mispronounced and the "joker" was born!
|