To track the history of jigsaw puzzles we have to go in the past to approximately 1760 in England, where the Englishman John Spilsbury one day came out with a brilliant hint.
John was a mapmaker and an engraver, owner of a print shop based in Russell Court, London. Using one of his world map printed on a piece of hardwood, John cut out the frontiers of the nations with a marquetry saw. The aim of course was to produce an educational instrument for English kids to study their geography.
To be reported John was the brother of Jonathan Spilsbury, a renowned portrait painter at the moment, well known for his portrait of George III, king of Great Britain and Ireland.
John Spilsbury immediately realised the business possibility of his discovery and decided to commercialise what he termed ‘dissections’. He declined his dissections on several maps: the World, Europe, Asia…
Initially educational instruments, the idea promptly evolved and around 1820 these dissections were employed as hobby and toys too.
The end of the 19th century witnessed changes in the building of those dissections. First the usage of the treadle saw was introduced to cut out the pieces and so they ended up now generally known as ‘jigsaw puzzles’, a denomination that is certainly better we have to admit! The creating was rather simple at the time as the pictures were either painted or glued on the wood support plus the pieces were traced manually using a pencil at the back of the board. Apparently these marks can still be observed today on fairly old puzzles.
Secondly a different support was now utilised as well: cardboard. This less expensive support was although primarily employed for child jigsaw puzzles.
Jigsaw puzzles had been hugely fashionable products during the very first part of the twentieth century as they were more and more created as an entertainment or a pastime for adults as well as a very widespread hobby within the higher categories of society. They were in fact pricey products simply because the pieces were cut out by hands. These grownup puzzles were fairly an undertaking by the way. The pieces were most often cut out on the colour lines and the pieces were juxtaposed â€" not interlocked â€" so you could possibly very easily waste all your efforts with the first sneeze!
Also, as opposed to the educational jigsaw puzzles for kids, no image was presented over the box, just a vague name to offer the puzzle maker some indications and leads… challenging isn’t it?
But as the trend carried on, interlocked parts were rapidly conceived and confirmed the achievement of jigsaw puzzles as a pastime, becoming more and more popular as costs went down. Themes grew to become more and more diverse and various and though challenging economical days hit society in the 30s, jigsaw puzzles appears to deliver a great deal of consumers with a cheap evasion along with a way to satisfy their drive for achievement.
Nowadays jigsaw puzzles continue to be rather favoured. Either an educational resource for kids or a pastime for grownups, jigsaw puzzles have a sweet and mild way to get addictive, but it surely is a harmless addiction of course.
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