Peter Pan playing cards,

London : The International Card Co., [ca. 1911]

Peter Pan entered the cultural imagination in 1904, when J. M. Barrie’s spectacularly successful play was first staged. That is also when the character was first depicted visually, in a poster by Charles A. Buchel, who in 1910 illustrated this deck of enameled cardboard playing cards. Buchel depicted Peter Pan as well as many of the play’s other characters, including Wendy, Smee, Nana, and Mrs. Darling. Notably missing is Tinker Bell, likely because in the stage production she appeared as a zigzagging flame of light accompanied by a ringing sound—difficult to represent on a card. The game is played by collecting a complete set of four cards featuring any given character.