From William Pulleyn’s The Etymological Compendium, Or, Portfolio of Origins and Inventions (1830), via Google Book Search:

It is generally believed, that Cards were invented for the amusement of one of the early kings of the line of Bourbon; but this belief is erroneous. Who the man was that invented these instruments of amusement and folly is not known, neither can we tell in what age they were invented. Our knowledge is limited to the country whence they come, viz. Egypt. The colours are two, red and black, which answer to the equinox. The suits are four, answering to the four seasons. Their emblems formerly were, and still are in Spain:–for the heart, a cup, the emblem of winter–the spade, an acorn, the emblem of autumn–a club, the trefoil, the emblem of summer–the diamond, a rose, the emblem of spring. The twelve court cards answer to the twelve months, and were formerly depicted as the signs of the zodiac. The fifty-two cards answer to the fifty-two weeks in the year. The thirteen cards in each suite to the number of weeks in a lunar quarter. The aggregate number of pips calculated in the following manner, amount to the number of days in a year:–

55	Amount in each suite
4	Suites
____
220
120	Court card multiplied by 10
12	Number of court cards
13	Number of each suite
____
365	Total

Hmmm. Here’s Wikipedia.

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