Curse of Scotland Gurney Benham's book about playing cards, in describing the game of Pope Joan he gives his own explanation for why this card is known as the Curse of Scotland: "The crown of Scotland contained only nine stones, as they never could afford a tenth". Eric Partridge's "Routledge Dictionary of Historical Slang" considers: “the various theories are as interesting as they are unconvincing”. "Collins Encyclopedia of Scotland" says for "Curse of Scotland" "This is usually taken to be the nine of diamonds playing card, though explanations differ". The 19th century Tarot of Marseilles is one of the standard designs for tarot
Deuce (playing card) Deuce (playing card) The Deuce (, plural: "Däuser") is the playing card with the highest value in German card games. It may have derived its name from dice games in which the face of the die with two pips is also called a "Daus" in German. Unlike the Ace, with which it may be confused, the "Deuce" represents the 2, which is why two hearts, bells, etc. are depicted on the card. In many regions it is not only equated to the Ace, but is also, incorrectly, called an Ace. In the south German area it has been historically called