Card games featured in Cervantes' works

Playing cards appear in several works by Miguel de Cervantes, most notably Rinconete y Cortadillo, one of his Novelas ejemplares (Exemplary Novels). Its two young rogues meet at an inn, play cards and boast about their tricks before entering Seville's underworld.

Rinconete y Cortadillo

One of the protagonists always carries a deck of cards with him and calls it almost his trade. He explains that his father was a seller of bulls (indulgences) and that he learned how to cheat at cards. The novel features names of games from the era such as primera, quínolas or carteta. We look at this in detail in the card games of Rinconete y Cortadillo.

In Don Quixote

In Don Quixote, cards also appear: in proverbs, comparisons and scenes at inns where people are playing. Cervantes knew that environment very well. Furthermore, the book has inspired entire decks, as we discuss in Don Quixote in a deck of cards.

Why does it matter?

Because these works are a window into how people played during the Spanish Golden Age. Without them, we would know much less about the tahúres (card sharps) and the leisure of the period.