Playing cards games
This beautifully illustrated history traces the design of playing cards from their origins to the present day The author follows the changes and developments from the earliest cards in China India and Persia to the beginning of the four suited pack in fourteenth century Italy He then shows how the Germans used woodcuts to produce intricate designs which were superceded by the simpler designs of the French He describes how suit signs evolved gradually from a variety of different symbols As well as the usual type of pack a wide variety of special packs commemorative instructive humorous from all over the world are discussed The illustrations many of which were specially photographed for this book show cards from all over the world Playing cards..