Permalon Ltd

Miniature pocket playing cards advertising “Perma” smoker’s requisites published by Permalon Ltd, London W1. Each of the court cards has “Perma” printed across the centre and the “Perma Girl” appears on the backs and Joker. The box displays a list of the range of “Perma” smoking-related products, including spitfire flints, lighter fuel and pipe cleaners.

Above: miniature “Perma” playing cards promoting smoker’s requisites, probably from just after WW2 c.1948. 52 cards + joker in box. Some of the cards were still slightly adhered to one another by the edge burring that occurs with cheap cutting.

These miniature pocket cards (below) have the same court cards and anonymous ace of spades as the “Perma” pack and were probably produced by the same manufacturer.

Above: miniature novelty playing cards from the late 1940s or early 1950s with a charm of their own. Probably published as small prizes at fairground or seaside amusement arcades (such as the 'Rotary Merchandiser'), the cards measure 50mm by 29mm and were produced with red or blue background.

By Matt Probert

Member since March 02, 2012

View Articles

I have adored playing cards since before I was seven years old, and was brought up on packs of Waddington's No 1. As a child I was fascinated by the pictures of the court cards.

Over the next fifty years I was seduced by the artwork in Piatnik's packs and became a collector of playing cards.

Seeking more information about various unidentified packs I discovered the World of Playing Cards website and became an enthusiastic contributor researching and documenting different packs of cards.

I describe my self as a playing card archaeologist, using detective work to identify and date obscure packs of cards discovered in old houses, flea markets and car boot sales.