18th Century Colonial Playing Cards

This reproduction deck of 18-century 3-1/2" x 2-1/2" cards, printed on matte, heavy-weight, aged card stock, includes 52 four-suited playing cards. The card backs are blank as they were until the 19th century when Thomas DeLa Rue & Co. introduced the printed back to discourage poker players from "marking the cards". Packaged in a resealable poly bag. The history of playing cards dates can be traced back to mid 15th century. However, in that era, importing foreign cards was considered illegal. The reason may be that the cards included pictures of the Kings and Queens in the respective country. Gambling was a popular form of entertainment and a major culture in England in the 18th century. Pharaoh and basset in particular were the most popular card games in England and they continued to be widely played.