Panama playing cards

Published July 03, 1996 • Updated November 02, 2022

Not a lot of playing cards have been produced in Panama, only a couple of locally-produced tourist souvenir packs.

Playing Cards from the Republic of Panama

Panama is the southernmost country in the Central American isthmus, southeast of Costa Rica and and just above Colombia on the map. Unfortunately not a lot of playing cards have been produced in Panama, only a couple of locally-produced tourist souvenir packs. Apart from that there is the range of Panama Canal Souvenir playing cards published by the U. S. Playing Card Co. between 1908 - 1926. No Spanish-suited packs are known and there is little literature on the subject. There was a tax imposed on Panamanian playing cards between c.1917-1926.

Baraja Turistica - Recuerdos de Panama

Recuerdos de Panama tourist playing cards, printed by Litho Garso, S.A., Panama, c.1980s

Above: Souvenir of Panama produced c.1980s by Foto Imágen Vera, printed by Litho Garso, S.A., Panama. 52 cards + 2 jokers + 3 extra advertising cards + tourist information leaflet in box. Each card has a colour photo of local scenes and cultural attractions. The reverse shows Kuna Indian art and the legend 'Recuerdo de Panamá / Souvenir of Panama'.

Other Items

Above: box from another Panama Canal souvenir playing cards, unknown manufacturer (image grabbed from the Internet).

Above: a photographic souvenir of Panama.

Round the World card game published by Pepys, 1961

Above: Panama themed card from Round the World card game published in 1961.

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By Simon Wintle

Member since February 01, 1996

View Articles Contact Simon Wintle

Founder 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.

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