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
Queen (playing card) Queen (playing card) The Queen is a playing card with a picture of a woman on it. In many European languages, the King and Queen begin with the same letter so the latter is often called "Dame" (Lady) or variations thereof. In French playing cards, the usual rank of a queen is between the King and the Jack. In tarot decks, it outranks the Knight which in turn outranks the Jack. In the Paris pattern, each court card is identified as a particular historical or mythological personage as follows: In the game of Hearts, the Queen of Spades is the