Russian playing cards some famous Russian writers, particularly Alexandre Pushkin who wrote "The Queen of Spades". Because the 6 is the lowest card of the Russian deck, Russian slang uses the derogatory word "shestyorka" meaning "underling, lackey". Russian playing cards Russian playing cards are cards that used predominantly in Russia and in the former Soviet Union. Unlike the internationally known standard French 52-card deck, most Russian card games employ either the 36 card (games such as Durak) or the 32 card (particularly Preferans) decks. Playing cards were first introduced into Russia at the beginning of the 17th century from Western and Central Europe
Knight (playing card) an upper knave face card called the Ober. One exception is the Württemberg pattern where the Obers are seen riding on horses. This depiction was inspired by Cego tarot decks during the 19th century. In the original Mamluk Egyptian deck, there were three court cards called the "malik" (king), the "nā'ib malik" (viceroy or deputy king), and the "thānī nā'ib" (second or under-deputy). The latter two were transformed into the knight and the knave when playing cards entered southern Europe. The knave is often depicted as a foot soldier or squire to the knight. Many early tarot decks had added