PLAYING CARD FACT: THE MAP DECK

PLAYING CARD FACT: THE MAP DECK

During WWII, the U.S. Playing Card Co. developed a special deck of cards for U.S. soldiers. 

The cards were specially made to peel apart when soaked in water, revealing a map printed on the inside of the two halves. The maps show recommended escape routes. 

These secret map card decks were supplied to American POWs along with the regular food and clothing shipments allowed to them. 

No one knows how many decks were printed or distributed, as the entire operation was secret. Few of these cards survive today. One can be seen at the SPY MUSEUM in Washington, D.C.