Where did playing-cards come from?

A cluster of early literary references refer to the game being introduced by 'a Saracen', 'the Moorish Game' etc. Etymological evidence also suggests that the Arabs introduced playing cards into Europe in the second half of the fourteenth century and that European cards evolved from the suit system and composition of these cards.
Playing cards have always served two distinct purposes: gambling, and the playing of games of skill.

In gambling games, cards are used as a randomising device, like dice or a roulette wheel. The rules usually remain relatively simple: there may or may not be a banker.

In games of skill the chance element is reduced. By means of devices such as bidding, capturing, collecting and melding, and more sophisticated rules, skill becomes more decisive.

What did the earliest European cards look like?

The first European references to playing cards date from the 1370s and come from Catalonia (Spain), Florence, France, Sienna, Viterbo (Italy), Southern Germany, Switzerland and Brabant.
Here are some images of the higlighted countries above:

SWITZERLAND

(to see more about Switzerlands' evolution of card click the icon above)

SPAIN

(click the table to see this clearly)


ITALY



(to see more about Italys' evolution of card click the icon above)

SOUTH GERMANY

(to see more about Germanys' evolution of card click the icon above)