Curse of Scotland excluded, making the 7, later called the "beer card", a "stop") but there is no direct relation with the 9. Gomme's book goes on to claim "At the game of Pope Joan, the nine of diamonds is Pope; therefore the nine of diamonds is the curse of Scotland". "The Spectator" review considered the claim "more cogent in form than in matter". A letter written in response to "The Spectator's" book review pointed out that the saying was established well before Culloden, and preferred the Pope Joan theory to other explanations. Other explanations given in the letter were: An 1864 book
King (playing card) names for the kings in the Paris pattern ("portrait officiel") are: Most French-suited continental European patterns are descended from the Paris pattern but they have dropped the names associated with each card. Kings from French playing cards: Kings from Italian playing cards: Kings from Spanish playing cards: Kings from German playing cards: King (playing card) The king is a playing card with a picture of a king on it. The king is usually the highest-ranking face card. In French playing cards and tarot decks, the king immediately outranks the queen. In Italian and Spanish playing cards, the king immediately outranks