The deck pictured at the left was acquired by the Museum in 1979. It is typical of a playing card deck used by an entrepreneur for advertising purposes.
The flap-top box (9.1cm long x 6cm wide x 1.7cm high) advertises British Consul Cigarettes on the front and back of the box. The deck inside is a standard 52 card deck which uses the international suit indicators. A card back is also illustrated.
Other decks which may also be considered as "advertisements" include the many airline "travel" decks. When commercial plane travel became more common, the airlines furnished playing card decks without charge for the use of passengers. These decks only identified the airline by name and served as an advertisement for the airline, since passengers could take the decks with them when they left the flight. The following are examples of some "travel" decks from the collection.
This partially pictured deck on the right was donated to the collection in 1975. The backs of each card (pictured upper left of photograph) carry the Swiss Air logo.
Unlike the other airline decks on this page, it is a 36 card deck used to play the game of "Scharfskoph" or Sheepshead, a game popular in German speaking areas of Europe. Similar decks can be viewed elsewhere in the playing card section.
The container is a box 9.5cm long x 6.2cm wide 1.5cm thick. The cards were made by Schaffauser Spielkarten whose name appears on the underside of the bottom of the box.
The 36 cards (8.9cm long x 5.7cm wide) include numbered cards 6 through 10, Aces, and face cards. Although this deck uses the international suit indicators, on the numbered cards and the Aces, the imdicatos appear in all four corners. Face cards are double-headed court figures with suit indicators in the upper left and lower right.
The partially pictured deck on the left was donated to the collection in 1982.
Wardair was a "first class only" vacation charter airline flying from Canada to different parts of the world. It distributed decks such as the one pictured to passengers upon request.
The flap-top box (9.2cm long x 6.1cm wide x 1.6cm thick) includes the name of the airline and the manufacture's information in both the English language and the French language, and is pictured on the right with the English language side.
The backs of the cards (upper left of the phtograph) have a picture of a Wardair plane flying over snow-capped mountains.
The 52 card standard deck (8.9cm long x 5.7cm wide) uses the international suit patterns. There are two jokers with the deck. Manufacture information is on the Ace of Spades and one of the jokers. The cards were made by Estrie Graphics, Inc., Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada.
This partially pictured deck on the right was donated to the collection in 1980. American Airlines offered the deck without charge to passengers traveling on long flights, regardless of cabin class.
The flap-top box (pictured on the left) is 9cm long x 6cm wide x 1.5cm thick. Across both sides of the box is the American Airlines logo. The backs of each card have the same logo as on the box.
The cards (8.9cm long x 5.7cm wide) are a standard 52 card deck with two jokers. The international suit indicators are used. The Ace of Spades indicates that the deck was made by the United States Playing Card Company, Cinncinatti, Ohio.
The pattern of this deck is no different from the deck offered by Wardair or SAS, suggesting that the same lithograph designs were used regardless of where any of these decks were manufactured. However, these decks differ considerably from the Swissair deck, since the games they were intended to be use for differ as well. These "standard" international decks appear to be of use in playing "Poker", "Bridge", "Rummy", and a number of "Solitare" games.
The partially pictured deck on the left was donated to the collection in 1975. A flap-top box (9.2cm long x 6cm wide x 1.7cm thick) features the SAS logo.
The same logo is on the back of each card in the deck (pictured last row upper right). The are 52 cards in the deck, one joker, and one card which list a table of points for the game of Auction Bridge.
Each card in the deck (8.8cm long x 5.8cm wide) uses the international suit indicators, and appears to be a "standard" deck.
The card patterns and face cards are unlike the other types of decks used in Scandinavia - a sample of which can be seen elsewhere in the playing card section of this Website.
Interestingly enough, the legend on the Ace of Spades says the deck was made in Hong Kong! However, other than the legend on the Ace of Spades, the rest of the deck appears to look like other "standard" decks.
The deck on the right was donated to the collection in 1975. It is a "standard" 52 card deck. The Ace of Spades indicates that the deck was lithographed in the United States, and since the pattern seems identical to some of the other decks, this deck may also have been manufactured by the United States Playing Card Company.
The flap-top box (on the left side of the photograph) 9.1cm long x 6.2cm wide x 1.6cm thick, carries the Air Canada logo. The backs of each card (second row center card) have a stylized version of the Air Canada logo.
In addition to the 52 cards (8.9cm long x 5.8cm wide) there are two jokers. The international suit indicators are used. The Ace of Spades is more elaborate than the other Aces.
NOTE: This page was originally created and posted on the Web on March 29, 1997. Subsequently it has been modified and periodically updated. Last update: June 11, 2010