The game Basset is described by a few authors as having been invented in 1593 by a noble Venetian named Pietro Cellini, who was punished with exile in Corsica for his contrivance. It was intended for persons of the highest rank because of the great losses or gains that might be accrued by players.Īccording to DELI ( Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana), the word Basetta is first recorded in the first half of the 15th century. On the walls is a bouquet of gambler’s delights: boxing, horse racing, the odds of the day, and the patron saint of card games, Edmond Hoyle.īasset (French bassette, from the Italian bassetta), also known as barbacole and hocca, is a gambling game using cards, that was considered one of the most polite. Thomas Rowlandson painted his version of a gaming den in 'The Hazard Room'.
