UNKNOWN WEAVER, German
(active in the 15th century)

Game of cards

15th century
Tapestry
Historisches Museum, Basel

Playing-cards originated in the East. They appear in Europe in the 13th century introduced either through Spain or by the Crusaders. Besides the pack that we know today, there were many others, and the number of games played with them is almost infinite.

The detail of a 15th-century German tapestry, presented here, shows a game of cards.