Curse of Scotland Curse of Scotland The Curse of Scotland is a nickname used for the Nine of Diamonds playing card. The expression has been used at least since the early 18th century, and many putative explanations have been given for the origin of this nickname for the card. In a book printed in London in 1708, "The British Apollo, or, Curious amusements for the ingenious", a question is posed: Q. "Why is the" Nine of Diamonds "called" the curse of Scotland? A. Diamonds as the Ornamental Jewels of a Regnal Crown, imply no more in the above-nam'd Proverb than a mark of
Knight (playing card) female ranks into the face cards including the Cary-Yale deck which added queens, mounted ladies, and maids as counterparts to the males. While mounted ladies and maids faded away or survive in minor regional patterns like the Tarocco Siciliano, knights were dropped in favour of queens in non-tarot French decks. In the Spanish suited Aluette pattern found in Brittany and the Vendée, knights have an androgynous appearance. Knight (playing card) A knight or cavalier is a playing card with a picture of a man riding a horse on it. It is a face card and is called "caballo" in Spanish