The end of the second millennium is
characterised by a declining popularity of bridge apart that is... from a
group of enthusiasts who eagerly practice the game in their organisations.
But organisations as is usually the case ossify in time – they become
the guardians of a strictly worked out and pale orthodoxy; regulations,
laws, instructions, restrictions and such boring details. Furthermore they
persuaded themselves and others that theirs is a „higher form of
bridge”. In fact bridge is a very old game and once upon a time was
practiced in a manner more simple, more pleasent and at the same time more
interesting. |
The beginnings of bridge are lost in the shades of
prehistory. It does not appear that prof. Turlantani was right in observing on
the rock paintings in Libenia mammoth hunters playing with flintstone cards.
Equally it is quite improbable that the famous frescoes found in the temple in
Karajangaratho depict four aliens who, according to Dueniken, are playing in a
contract of 1 No Trump. Let us then
restrict ourselves to the well documented beginnings of bridge.
5000 years ago there were a people living in the delta
of the Tigris and the Euphratis, Summerians, who found out that what is said can also be written; and
since they had nothing better to hand, began to write on clay tablets which
after baking were easily preserved. Thousands upon thousands of these tablets
were only just recently dug up in our times and amongst these they also found
bridge cards!
From Summeria bridge drifted to