Escudo de Lascuarenta.es con los cuatro palos de la baraja españolaLascuarenta.es (The Forty)

Reading

Blog

Stories about the Spanish deck, the rules explained plainly, details about our decks and project news.

As de Oros de una baraja de Lascuarenta.es3 de Oros de una baraja de Lascuarenta.es
The As of Oros and the three of Espadas: the most valuable cards of each suit in the forty-card deck.

Culture ·

Why do Spanish playing cards not have 8s or 9s?

Spanish playing cards do not have 8s or 9s because the usual version has 40 cards: those two numbers were left out of the deck used in games like Tute, Brisca, or Guiñote. Why they were removed, which cards are missing from the Spanish deck, and when the 48-card version is used.

Read the article
Rey de Oros de una baraja de Lascuarenta.esCaballo de Oros de una baraja de Lascuarenta.es
El rey y el caballo de oros: tenerlos del palo de triunfo permite cantar las cuarenta.

Culture ·

To "Cantar las cuarenta": Where the expression comes from

To "Cantar las cuarenta" means to reprimand today, but it was born at the card table: it's the `cante` (announcement) of the `Rey` (King) and `Caballo` (Knight) of the trump suit in Tute. The history of a phrase that originated from the Spanish deck and stayed in the language.

Read the article
Rey de Espadas de una baraja de Lascuarenta.esRey de Copas de una baraja de Lascuarenta.es
Los reyes de espadas y copas: valor de carta y cantes cambian entre Tute, Guiñote y Brisca.

Rules ·

Tute, Guiñote and Brisca: what exactly makes them different

All three are played with a Spanish-suited deck, with trumps, and with 'cantes de veinte y cuarenta' (scoring declarations), yet they are distinct games. The difference lies in the obligation to follow suit ('arrastre') and the draw pile ('mazo'): here it is clearly explained.

Read the article
As de Copas de una baraja de Lascuarenta.esAs de Bastos de una baraja de Lascuarenta.es
El as de copas y el as de bastos de la Baraja Antigua, la baraja por defecto del sitio.

Decks ·

The Old Deck, Card by Card

Forty-eight cards with faded inks, stained paper, and printed numbering: how a Spanish deck was prepared to look like it came from a 1900s drawer yet remain readable on a mobile phone.

Read the article
Sota de Copas de una baraja de Lascuarenta.esSota de Bastos de una baraja de Lascuarenta.es
Las sotas de copas y bastos: las cartas que reparten la conversación en una mesa de amigos.

Guides ·

How to set up a table with your friends in two minutes

A practical guide to playing Tute, Brisca, or Chinchón with your people even if you're in four different cities: create the room, invite with a link, and what happens if someone loses coverage.

Read the article

You might also like the rules of each game and the illustrated decks.