The first credible European mention occurs in Italy in 1377 in a diatribe against the moral evils of card-playing, after which an avalanche of bans across the European continent has been documented. The first playing cards appear to have originated in Tang dynasty China around the 9 th century CE with the invention of woodblock printing the card game craze rapidly spread through Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa.
As we head into this unusual holiday season a year later, it seems a good time to revisit some of these ideas, focusing on the myriad possibilities of a deck of cards.
In a past blog, we discussed the power of games to promote and reinforce mathematical thinking.
