Anti-Fascist Propaganda Pack for the Siege of Leningrad, 1942
In 1942 a pack of ‘anti-fascist’ playing cards was designed by Vasiliy Andrianovich Vlasov mocking the rulers of Germany and the Axis powers.
Towards the end of 1941 Stalin gave orders that playing card production was to be resumed in Leningrad and a pack of ‘anti-fascist’ playing cards was designed by Vasiliy Andrianovich Vlasov mocking the rulers of Germany and the Axis powers. Working under difficult conditions and with no electricity, the pack was finally ready for distribution in 1942 in an edition of about 700 copies. The characters portrayed are from those countries that had attacked Russia in 1941: Germany, Romania, Italy and Finland. The Queens and Aces are allegories of the times and the Joker shows Goebbels►



Above: a selection of the original cards from 1942, with Russian indices, also showing the cropping guide marks and colour palette.
Modern re-prints


Above: a re-print of the Anti-fascist playing cards published by Peterhof State Museum, 2010.
REFERENCES & CREDITS
Mētra, Jānis: Propaganda Pack for the Siege of Leningrad, in "The Playing Card" Vol.32 no.3, Nov/Dec 2003, IPCS, England.

By Valentin Krasavin (Валентин Красавин)
Member since January 05, 2014
Related Articles

International pattern from Russia
Colourful international pattern cards from Russia sold in Latvia.

Egyptium
“Egyptium” is a hand-illustrated deck of fantasy playing cards with artwork by Russian artist Oleg S...

Seminole Wars deck
Seminole Wars deck by J. Y. Humphreys, Philadelphia, c.1819.

Pam is the Knave of Clubs
Playing cards as metaphors in 18th century art - from fate, chance and social hierarchy t...

Dr Sacheverell
Dr. Henry Sacheverell's impeachment in 1710 sparked widespread public unrest and political upheaval,...

Cartes politiques : Jeu d'actualité
Political playing cards published by Grimaud et Chartier, Paris, 1872.

Politiker-Skat by Bubec
Caricatures of world leaders, including many German politicians, by the artist Bubec.

Le Poker Politique
French politicians and various world leaders caricatured by the German artist Bubec.

Russian Circus deck
The Russian Circus deck published by the Imperial Playing Card Factory, St Petersburg.

Clear Skies
‘Clear Skies’ playing cards paying tribute to the Ukrainian people in the face of war.

American Civil War playing cards
American Civil War playing cards with suits of stars, US flags, US shields and eagles.

Battles in Mexico, 1847
Uncut proof sheet with Mexican Battle scenes on the aces and portraits of American generals on the c...

Líneas rojas 2016
Semicaricatural images of Spanish politicians by Jordi Minguell, combined with non-standard suits. ...

Postabank 1
Caricatures of Hungarian politicians on a promotional pack for a commercial bank.

Not the Iraqi Most Wanted playing cards
Fifty-five Irish heroes and villains, some ancient but mostly modern.

Le Carte di Forattini
Political caricatures by Giorgio Forattini published by Arnoldo Mondadori Editore, Italy, 1993.
Most Popular
Our top articles from the past 28 days