Playing cards from the 16th and 17th centuries

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These images are of playing cards from the 16th and 17th centuries. I believe they are all of the face of the cards, I would be curious to see if their backs are highly decorative. The suits and card values seem to be the same as modern cards. 

These images, and those after the jump, are from the Paris Musées digital collection. There are more at the link, you can also download zips of each card which contain the card's image as well as a PDF with further information. The PDF is in French.

Hornussen - a popular Swiss sport

Hornussen is an old and popular Swiss sport. It has been described as a cross between baseball and golf, although that doesn't really capture its play and rules well.

A puck, called the hornuss, is mounted on a rail and driven down field by a player swings a rather odd, long and flexible bat. In the field are players of the opposing team who wield giant rackets to try to knock the hornuss down. If they successfully knock it down the offense scores no points, otherwise one point is awarded if the hornuss travels at least 100 meters, and additional points are awarded for each 10 meters that it travels beyond that.

Teams alternate at bats. Games are said to be leisurely, and skill rather than physical strength is important so a wide range of players can, and do, participate. The below video has an English narration that explains the sport further.

Playing games

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This is a small series of artwork and photographs of people playing games. They are from the Smithsonian Institutions online archive where there are more examples. If you have the inclination, tear yourself away from a game of computer solitaire and check out the archive.