Mad Joker

A cover illustration of Mad Magazine. There is no doubt that the central card could only be the Joker.

Super Chess

Super Chess by the Swiss painter Paul Klee. Modern interpretation of the subject.

100 Bullets

Cover of the comic book series written by Brian Azzarello and illustrated by Eduardo Risso.
Sure that's here the deadly Ace of Spades.

Pin Up Chess

Your move (1964) by the American artist Gil Elvgren. A sexy pin up playing with a chess piece; I don’t think that Elvgren suggested that she’s really able to play chess.
The artist uses here only one of the numerous chess metaphors.

Playing for the Booty

Pirates of the Mediterranean playing at dice for prisoners (1869). A 19th century engraving of a painting by the British artist Frederick Richard Pickersgill.
Probably Corsairs from Algiers robbed some beautiful Italian or Spanish women and are gambling now for the booty. A highly romanticizing scenery, what a gorgeous life had these pirates.

Gambling at an Inn

Gambling Scene at an Inn (late 1640s) by the Flemish painter David Teniers the Younger. A typical Baroque painting. Some travelers are passing their time at an Inn with gambling.

Arab Children

Arab Children Playing Cards by the American painter Frederick Arthur Bridgman. Bridgman was specialized in oriental subjects and chose here unspectacular street scene. So it’s kind of a mixture of genre painting and orientalism.

Gambling Cowboy

Another pulp magazine with a gambling cowboy.

Renaissance Card players

Card players (c.1520) by the Dutch painter Lucas van Leyden (1494-1533). A mixed group of men and women are playing cards. They are gambling seriously because there’s a lot of money on the table.
To me it’s surprising how up-to-date the cards are looking totally in contrast to the renaissance dresses.

Greek Heroes

The Greek heroes Achilles and Ajax are playing dice during the siege of Troja. Seems that gambling was already in ancient times the preferred pastime amusement for soldiers.