Pneumatic Series ‘F’

Two alternative versions of De la Rue & Co’s Pneumatic Series ‘F’ playing cards with colourful back designs for P&O British India Lines, c.1925. The “Pneumatic” brand was first produced in c.1890 as a means to facilitate shuffling and dealing by preventing cards from adhering to one another. The word “Licensees” on the boxes refers to De la Rue's license to manufacture playing cards and promise to pay the duty which is specified on the Ace of Spades.

Above: De la Rue Pneumatic Series ‘F’ playing cards with three alternative back designs for P&O British India Lines, c.1925.

Above: the court cards are De la Rue’s standard English pattern from c.1922-1927 using seriffed indices. All images courtesy Matt Probert.

Above: Thomas De La Rue Pneumatic deck with advertising for Fyffes Line, with De la Rue ace and joker but with Goodall courts, c.1925-30. No series code on the hard telescopic box. Courtesy Matt Probert.

REFERENCES

Lodge, Ken: The Standard English Pattern (second revised and enlarged edition), Bungay, Suffolk, 2010

By Simon Wintle

Member since February 01, 1996

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Curator and editor of the World of Playing Cards since 1996. He is a former committee member of the IPCS and was graphics editor of The Playing-Card journal for many years. He has lived at various times in Chile, England and Wales and is currently living in Extremadura, Spain. Simon's first limited edition pack of playing cards was a replica of a seventeenth century traditional English pack, which he produced from woodblocks and stencils.