Page 26 - June 2018 Journal of Antiques and Collectibles
P. 26
by Kary Pardy
Collecting by Pieces: Antique Wooden Jigsaw Puzzles
A ntique jigsaw puzzles have a devoted following, a group of collectors who
hunt for elusive complete puzzles and even more desirable missing pieces.
The decorative images and satisfying feel of interlocking hand-cut
wooden pieces make for a satisfying accomplishment, and this group of fringe
toy collectors is eager to share their knowledge.
While some antiques have classification schemes and libraries of reference
books, jigsaw puzzles are a little more mysterious. A few dedicated collectors and
scholars are doing their part to remedy that, including Anne D. Williams, a
historian of jigsaw puzzles and author of The Jigsaw Puzzle, Piecing Together
a History, Bob Armstrong, a prolific puzzle collector and advocate, and Mark
Cappitella, a maker of fine wooden jigsaw puzzles and collector.
Let’s start with the work of Anne Williams, whose Jigsaw Puzzles – a Brief
History tells us that carved wooden jigsaw puzzles originated in the 1760s, with
cartographers pasting maps onto wood and cutting out shapes with marquetry
saws. The resulting “dissected map” was a fun and educational geography toy
that has withstood the test of time.
Puzzles broke into the adult market in England first and gained traction
in America around 1900. Puzzle makers had begun to test out smaller, more
complicated pieces and scenes that held more appeal for adults, such as those
with multiple people interacting. Williams writes, “The puzzles of those days
were quite a challenge. Most had pieces cut exactly on the color lines. There
were no transition pieces with two colors to signal, for example, that the brown
area (roof) fit next to the blues (sky). A sneeze or a careless move could undo an
evening’s work.” This fragility was because the earliest jigsaw puzzles did not
interlock. To further complicate matters, unlike children’s puzzles, adult puzzles
did not have the ever-so-helpful guide picture on box. Puzzlers had only a title
(sometimes unclear) and their skills to help them, but the final reward included
watching a mystery image appear beneath their hands.
Over the years, two major innovations advanced the popular puzzle industry:
the advent of figure pieces and interlocking pieces. Figure pieces, first
introduced by Parker Brothers in its “Pastime” brand puzzles, fascinated the
public with wood cut into recognizable objects like animals or human figures.
These puzzles were intrinsically easier, but their novelty made them just as
popular, as they were almost like pictures within a picture. Interlocking pieces,
referenced above, cut down on the risk of puzzles spilling everywhere. One
could grab a corner of a completed section and pull it across the table without
destroying hours of hard work. This style reduced the loss of pieces.
These innovations were so successful that in 1909 Parker Brothers ceased
production on games and devoted its entire factory to the production of Pastime In 2017, Cowan’s Auctions sold a rare box containing five identically cut wood and
puzzles. Puzzles continued to dominate the toy scene through the Great paper puzzles signed by Thomas Wagner and Jacob Shaffer. Wagner and Shaffer were
Depression; sales reached their puzzle makers in Philadelphia circa 1860. The complete, early collection, with its
peak in 1933 with 10 million original box, sold for $960 at auction. Cowan’s Auctions, Lot 268, 11-17-17
sold per week. Puzzles offered
beauty and a sense of accom-
plishment for less than nights
out on the town. Though
initially expensive because of
their hand-cut nature, during
tough times unemployed
carpenters and other artisans
met the fervent demand by
cutting jigsaw puzzles in their
workshops and selling or even
The intricate work by modern
wooden jigsaw puzzle maker Liberty
Puzzles pays homage to puzzles of
old. Their figural pieces are art
sneakily hidden within a larger
vintage print and it’s easy to see
how the invention of figural pieces
captivated audiences in the early
20th century. Liberty Puzzles,
Pineapple with Insects.
Journal of Antiques and Collectibles
24
Collecting by Pieces: Antique Wooden Jigsaw Puzzles
A ntique jigsaw puzzles have a devoted following, a group of collectors who
hunt for elusive complete puzzles and even more desirable missing pieces.
The decorative images and satisfying feel of interlocking hand-cut
wooden pieces make for a satisfying accomplishment, and this group of fringe
toy collectors is eager to share their knowledge.
While some antiques have classification schemes and libraries of reference
books, jigsaw puzzles are a little more mysterious. A few dedicated collectors and
scholars are doing their part to remedy that, including Anne D. Williams, a
historian of jigsaw puzzles and author of The Jigsaw Puzzle, Piecing Together
a History, Bob Armstrong, a prolific puzzle collector and advocate, and Mark
Cappitella, a maker of fine wooden jigsaw puzzles and collector.
Let’s start with the work of Anne Williams, whose Jigsaw Puzzles – a Brief
History tells us that carved wooden jigsaw puzzles originated in the 1760s, with
cartographers pasting maps onto wood and cutting out shapes with marquetry
saws. The resulting “dissected map” was a fun and educational geography toy
that has withstood the test of time.
Puzzles broke into the adult market in England first and gained traction
in America around 1900. Puzzle makers had begun to test out smaller, more
complicated pieces and scenes that held more appeal for adults, such as those
with multiple people interacting. Williams writes, “The puzzles of those days
were quite a challenge. Most had pieces cut exactly on the color lines. There
were no transition pieces with two colors to signal, for example, that the brown
area (roof) fit next to the blues (sky). A sneeze or a careless move could undo an
evening’s work.” This fragility was because the earliest jigsaw puzzles did not
interlock. To further complicate matters, unlike children’s puzzles, adult puzzles
did not have the ever-so-helpful guide picture on box. Puzzlers had only a title
(sometimes unclear) and their skills to help them, but the final reward included
watching a mystery image appear beneath their hands.
Over the years, two major innovations advanced the popular puzzle industry:
the advent of figure pieces and interlocking pieces. Figure pieces, first
introduced by Parker Brothers in its “Pastime” brand puzzles, fascinated the
public with wood cut into recognizable objects like animals or human figures.
These puzzles were intrinsically easier, but their novelty made them just as
popular, as they were almost like pictures within a picture. Interlocking pieces,
referenced above, cut down on the risk of puzzles spilling everywhere. One
could grab a corner of a completed section and pull it across the table without
destroying hours of hard work. This style reduced the loss of pieces.
These innovations were so successful that in 1909 Parker Brothers ceased
production on games and devoted its entire factory to the production of Pastime In 2017, Cowan’s Auctions sold a rare box containing five identically cut wood and
puzzles. Puzzles continued to dominate the toy scene through the Great paper puzzles signed by Thomas Wagner and Jacob Shaffer. Wagner and Shaffer were
Depression; sales reached their puzzle makers in Philadelphia circa 1860. The complete, early collection, with its
peak in 1933 with 10 million original box, sold for $960 at auction. Cowan’s Auctions, Lot 268, 11-17-17
sold per week. Puzzles offered
beauty and a sense of accom-
plishment for less than nights
out on the town. Though
initially expensive because of
their hand-cut nature, during
tough times unemployed
carpenters and other artisans
met the fervent demand by
cutting jigsaw puzzles in their
workshops and selling or even
The intricate work by modern
wooden jigsaw puzzle maker Liberty
Puzzles pays homage to puzzles of
old. Their figural pieces are art
sneakily hidden within a larger
vintage print and it’s easy to see
how the invention of figural pieces
captivated audiences in the early
20th century. Liberty Puzzles,
Pineapple with Insects.
Journal of Antiques and Collectibles
24
