Panko Playing Cards

Damaged and weathered front of the box of "Panko" playing cards, labelled "The Great Card Game, Suffragists v. Anti-Suffragists"

Illustrated by Punch magazine’s Edward Tennyson Reed and made by Peter Gurney of London. Also known as ‘Votes for Women’, the game pits opponents and supporters of women’s suffrage against each other. It was widely advertised and distributed by the WSPU.

Item Details

Date: 1909

Catalogue record: N/A

Material: Card

Item Media

Item Images

Damaged and weathered front of the box of "Panko" playing cards, labelled "The Great Card Game, Suffragists v. Anti-Suffragists"
Panko Playing Cards
The rules of Panko: Suffragists v. Anti-Suffragists
Panko Playing Cards rules
Examples of the four suffragists suits from Panko playing cards. The card on the far left, number 10, has the words "Toot! Toot! Toot!" above an image of a a man playing the bagpipes with a Votes for Women sash on. The card second from the left, number 20, has the words "Pank! Pank! Pank!" above an image of a woman decked out in suffrage colors. The card second from the right, number 30, has the words "Law! Law! Law!" above an image of a woman in a purple robe, holding a scroll with the words "Votes for Women". The card on the far right, number 40, has the words, "Votes for Women", above an image of women protesting for votes for women against 3 large policemen.
Suffragist suits in the Panko playing card game
Four "anti-suffragist" cards from the Panko Playing Cards deck. On the left, card number 10 are the words "Help! Help! Help" as a woman is taken away by a policeman. The card second from the left is number 20 with the words "Turn 'em out!" and an image of a man in military uniform pointing. The second from the right, card number 30, has the words "Fourteen Days!" above an image of men laughing in a court room. The final image, on the right, is card number 40, with the words "Gaol! Gaol! Gaol!" above an image of a woman in a fur coat and hat refusing food served by a policeman at "Holloway Restaurant"
Cards from the Anti-suffragist suits in the Panko playing card game

Connections and References

References

Posts and pages from around the website which refer to this Collection Item

We Deserve a Medal: Militant Suffrage Activism

The fight for women's suffrage in the UK grew and gained momentum throughout the Victorian era. WSPU activists, known as suffragettes, engaged in all sorts of law-breaking activities to raise the profile of the movement. At the time, these actions were considered shocking and divided public opinion, but suffragettes remained resolute. Thousands were arrested, imprisoned and force-fed.