Poker Cards

From Poker Wiki

Playing cards, in general, date back to the Tang Dynasty (618–907) of China where it was recorded that relatives of the Princess Tongchang were found playing a "leaf game" that later developed into the game of Yezi Gexi. This game used paper cards with four suits just as found in the modern deck of poker cards.

It is also thought that the cards themselves were used as currency for the winnings of the game, hence the numeric ranking on today’s poker cards, as well as the ancient ones.

In fact, scholars now believe that these ancient cards were the reason that printed paper money later became the norm worldwide.

The design of modern poker cards comes from the Parisian courts of the 16th century, which is where the king, queen and knave (jack) derive their symbolism from. Each card can be traced back to a particular king or queen in history. For example, the king of spades is thought to be King David from the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament. Other examples include Julius Caesar as the king of diamonds and the Sir Lancelot as the knave of clubs.

Poker Cards Today

With the invention of cellulose acetate, poker cards took on a new level of durability and the feel that they have in today’s casinos. Nowadays, a company known as KEM manufactures most plastic poker cards and they have became the gold standard in casinos, used exclusively during the World Series of Poker (WSOP).

KEM also makes classical designs for consumer gaming with paper prints from the past such as Bicycle and Bee patterns.

During the 2007 WSOP, however, a new playing card design was introduced known as the PokerPeek. But these decks were summarily discarded by professional players who did not like the change and preferred the more traditional designs. In turn, the PokerPeek took backseat to the KEM designs used in such high regard for live poker.