The Pappmine was designed to be a low cost, and easy to produce cardboard anti-tank mine which could relieve pressure on the overstretched metalworking industry.

The Pappmine was made entirely of non-metallic materials to prevent detection by electric mine detectors.

In the center of the mine, the pressure plate sat on top of a glass igniter that was embedded in 5 kg (11 lb) of TNT.

340–360 kg (750–790 lb) of pressure on the plate crushed the igniter creating a flash which then passed to the priming charge which exploded the TNT filling.

The Pappmine relied on blast effect to destroy enemy tanks and it did not have a shaped charge warhead.