Monte Bank
Encyclopedia
Monte Bank, Mountebank, Spanish Monte and Mexican Monte, sometimes just Monte, is a Spanish gambling card game
and the national card game of Mexico
. It ultimately derives from basset, where the banker (dealer) pays on matching cards. Because the odds favor the house (the banker or dealer), the term mountebank
has also come to mean a con artist, as in three-card monte
. The term "monte" has also been used for a variety of other gambling games, especially varieties of three-card poker
.
and later with cards made expressly for the game, known as Monte cards, as well as modified standard decks. These games became popular in the United States, specially in Texas, after they were brought back by returning troops from the Mexican–American War
in 1848. They remained popular through the end of the century particularly in the American West
, and even among the American Indians.
The players, sometimes known as punters, place bets on the layout of their choice, or on both. Starting with the player to banker’s right and proceeding counter-clockwise, each player has one chance to place his stake on the layouts. After the last player has placed his stake, the banker turns the monte face up. The card now showing is known as the “gate”. The banker pays, one for one, any bet on a matching suit
. The banker takes all the bets from a layout if the “gate” did not match the suit in the layout.
Card game
A card game is any game using playing cards as the primary device with which the game is played, be they traditional or game-specific. Countless card games exist, including families of related games...
and the national card game of Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. It ultimately derives from basset, where the banker (dealer) pays on matching cards. Because the odds favor the house (the banker or dealer), the term mountebank
Charlatan
A charlatan is a person practicing quackery or some similar confidence trick in order to obtain money, fame or other advantages via some form of pretense or deception....
has also come to mean a con artist, as in three-card monte
Three-card Monte
Three-card Monte, also known as the Three-card marney, Three-card trick, Three-Way, Three-card shuffle, Menage-a-card, Triplets, Follow the lady, Les Trois Perdants , le Bonneteau, Find the lady, or Follow the Bee is a confidence game in which the victim, or mark, is tricked into betting a...
. The term "monte" has also been used for a variety of other gambling games, especially varieties of three-card poker
Poker
Poker is a family of card games that share betting rules and usually hand rankings. Poker games differ in how the cards are dealt, how hands may be formed, whether the high or low hand wins the pot in a showdown , limits on bet sizes, and how many rounds of betting are allowed.In most modern poker...
.
History
The two card version Mexican monte, and the four card version Spanish monte, are a type of card game played in Spain before coming to the American Southwest via Mexico. They were originally played with a Spanish deck (40 cards)Baraja (playing cards)
The Baraja is a deck of playing cards associated with Spain, it is usually called Baraja Española . It has four suits and is usually made up of 40 cards...
and later with cards made expressly for the game, known as Monte cards, as well as modified standard decks. These games became popular in the United States, specially in Texas, after they were brought back by returning troops from the Mexican–American War
Mexican–American War
The Mexican–American War, also known as the First American Intervention, the Mexican War, or the U.S.–Mexican War, was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848 in the wake of the 1845 U.S...
in 1848. They remained popular through the end of the century particularly in the American West
American Old West
The American Old West, or the Wild West, comprises the history, geography, people, lore, and cultural expression of life in the Western United States, most often referring to the latter half of the 19th century, between the American Civil War and the end of the century...
, and even among the American Indians.
The play
Monte uses a deck of 40 playing cards (removing the 10’s, 9’s and 8’s from a standard 52 card deck). One or more people may play against the house, known as the "bank" or "banker", and who is the dealer.Mexican Monte
In some versions, the monte banker, or dealer, must have the whole of his bank, or money which he risks at the game, in sight upon the table. The play begins with the dealer drawing one card from the bottom of the deck and placing it face up on the table, this card becomes the “bottom layout”. Similarly, another card is drawn from the top of the deck, known as the “top layout”, and placed face up on the table, usually closer to the dealer. The remaining stack of cards, called the “monte” is placed face down in front of the dealer. Sometimes a monte box was used to hold the monte.The players, sometimes known as punters, place bets on the layout of their choice, or on both. Starting with the player to banker’s right and proceeding counter-clockwise, each player has one chance to place his stake on the layouts. After the last player has placed his stake, the banker turns the monte face up. The card now showing is known as the “gate”. The banker pays, one for one, any bet on a matching suit
Suit (cards)
In playing cards, a suit is one of several categories into which the cards of a deck are divided. Most often, each card bears one of several symbols showing to which suit it belongs; the suit may alternatively or in addition be indicated by the color printed on the card...
. The banker takes all the bets from a layout if the “gate” did not match the suit in the layout.
Spanish Monte
The play in four-card monte is similar. Instead of one card in the bottom and top layouts, the dealer takes two cards from the top and two more from the bottom of the deck and place them all slightly apart upon the table to form the "bottom layout" and the "top layout", respectively. The deal is valid whatever suit appears, even if all four cards are of the same suit. Except for the banker, each player may bet on either pair or both, by placing the bet between that pair. If the “gate” card's suit matches one or both of the cards in a layout, or even cards in both layouts, the players win any bets, but if no card is matched all bets are lost. This decreases the house-odds somewhat, as there are frequently two suits in a layout, increasing the possibility of a match.Coup
After the hand, known as a "coup", the banker collects all losing bets and pays on a one to one basis all players whose bets matched the “gate” card in the layout and take both layouts off the table placing them aside to form a discard pile. Turning the "monte" face down he takes the next “gate” card from the bottom of the deck and puts it on the discard pile. He then deals for the next layout cards without shuffling or cutting the cards.Change of banker
The bank and deal remain with one player up to a maximum of five "coup", six, or any previously agreed amount of hands, when all of the cards are reshuffled together and in friendly play the bank (dealer) passes to the left. At least ten cards should remain unplayed so as to prevent players calculating which suits still remain in the deck. If at any time the bank is emptied, bank and deal pass to the left. In casino play, the house retains the bank.Popular culture
- John Wesley HardinJohn Wesley HardinJohn Wesley Hardin was an American outlaw, gunfighter, and controversial folk hero of the Old West. He was born in Bonham, Texas. Hardin found himself in trouble with the law at an early age, and spent the majority of his life being pursued by both local lawmen and federal troops of the...
killed a man over a game of monte. - MacKenzie, Pierce (1987) The Spanish Monte Fiasco (Series: T.G. Horne, No. 4) New American Library, New York, ISBN 0-451-14863-0, is an adventure novel set in the American Old WestAmerican Old WestThe American Old West, or the Wild West, comprises the history, geography, people, lore, and cultural expression of life in the Western United States, most often referring to the latter half of the 19th century, between the American Civil War and the end of the century...
. - According to JD BorthwickJohn David BorthwickJohn David Borthwick, born in Edinburgh, Scotland, to a prominent physician, was a nomadic Scottish journalist and author who received both a gentleman’s and artist’s education...
, Indians always disposed of their money in two ways: playing "Monte" with Mexicans and purchasing articles of clothing.
See also
- Basset (card game)
- Faro (card game)Faro (card game)Faro, Pharaoh, or Farobank, is a late 17th century French gambling card game descendant of basset, and belongs to the lansquenet and Monte Bank family of games, in that it is played between a banker and several players winning or losing according to the cards turned up matching those already...
- LansquenetLansquenetLansquenet is a card game. Lansquenet also refers to 15th and 16th century German foot soldiers; the lansquenet drum is a type of field drum used by these soldiers.-Game play:The dealer or banker stakes a certain sum, and this must be met by the nearest to the dealer first, and so...