Origin
Faro descends from Basset, another French card game widely played in that period. The name Faro is a corrupted form of pharaoh, which probably refers to the Egyptian motif that often adorned French playing cards of the century.
Both Faro and Basset were forbidden in France on sever penalties. Despite that, the game was played illegally and enjoyed even greater popularity in England. The game is easy to learn and appears to be very fair, besides it is quick and quiet, hence can be played discretely. Therefore it attracted many players, especially from lower classes.
Gilly Williams wrote in his letter to George Selwyn in 1752: Our life here would not displease you, for we eat and drink well, and the Earl of Coventry holds a Pharaoh-bank every night to us, which we have plundered considerably.
Playing the Game:
Faro was played with two 52 cards decks and could involve an unlimited number of players. The person, who dealt the cards, was called banker and all other players were punters. Each punter placed a wager on a specific card from a 52 cards deck. When all the bets were placed, the banker started dealing from another deck.
In each round, the banker dealt two cards one on the right and one on the left. The right card was for the banker and the left one, called carte anglaise (English card) was for the players. All players who wagered on a card of the same rank as the banker's card, lost their stakes, while those who wagered on the carte anglaise, were paid even money.
The last card in the deck, which in theory had to win for the players, was neutral, viz. the players who wagered on this card received their wager back and did not win any money. This gave an advantage for the banker. With the full deck, the odds were 26-25 (4 percent advantage), and as the cards were drawn, the odds grew in favor of the banker. Besides, on ties (when two equal cards were drawn), the banker usually received half of the wagers placed on such card, which increased his advantage.
