Some of the cards at my
usual haunt, the Airport Bridge Club, have illustrations on the back and,
because there’s a part of me that thinks they look better if they’re all
pointing in the same direction (i.e., upright) I’ve taken to sorting them out that
way.
That’s gotten me wondering
about the faces of the cards. In practice, they’re practically palindromic – pretty
much the same no matter which end is up. It’s certainly the case with the face
cards. All the Kings, Queens and Jacks can be flipped and it makes no difference.
They look the same either way.
But on many of the
other cards, not so. Look at the Aces. Except for the Diamond, they can be
right side up or upside down. The Spade, Heart and Club symbols all have tops
and bottoms.
Among the even-numbered
cards, only the 2, 4 and 10 are palindromes in Spades, Hearts and Clubs. In the
design of the 6 – two vertical lines of three symbols – the middle ones point up.
Same with the 8, which has two more spots in the center of the card, one up,
one down. With the Diamonds, of course, it doesn’t matter.
When it comes to the
odd-numbered cards, all the Spades, Hearts and Clubs have a definite upside and
downside. Two of spots on the 3 point one way, the third points in the other
direction. Same situation with the single center spot on the 5, 7 and 9.
You’d think the
Diamonds once again would the exception, but not this time. It’s that center
spot. Did you ever notice that it’s not always in the middle? It’s offset
toward the top on one of the Diamonds – the 7. Pick up some cards and see for
yourself.
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