Korean Playing Cards: "Hwa-Tu"
Collection: Everyday Connections
Object Category: Games
Object Type: Card Games
Continent: Asia
Geographic Region: Eastern Asia
Materials: Plastic
These Korean playing cards, called "Hwatu," is also known as Korean flower cards. The deck of 48 cards is divided into twelve suits representing the months of the year. Each suit is represented by a different flower and contains four cards: a "bright" card, an "animal" card, a "ribbon" card, and a "plain" card.
The cards are similar to those used in the Japanese game Hanafuda. When Japan colonized Korea, their card games were introduced to Korea and several composite games emerged. "Go-Stop" is a very popular modern game.
Source:
https://fudawiki.org/en/hanafuda/hwatu#:~:text=Hwatu%20%7C%20Fuda%20Wiki&text=Hwatu%20(Hanja:%20%E8%8A%B1%E9%AC%AA%2C,the%20Japanese%20standard%20month%20arrangement.