Jigsaw vs. Regular Puzzle – Key Differences You Should Know

When people say the word “Puzzle,” they could mean a lot of completly different things, like Sudoku, crosswords, reasoning, puzzles, and so on. The meaning of the word Puzzle is so broad that it can easily be misunderstood. Therefore, if you’rereferring to the puzzle game that assembling the scattered picture pieces into a whole picture, then you may should add the word “Jigsaw” before “Puzzle”, so that people konw exactly what kind of puzzle game you’re talking about.

what is jigsaw puzzle?

Jigsaw puzzle is a type of puzzle game in which a complete image is cut into many small pieces, and then players slowly put the pieces back together, make the image whole again.

The puzzle is generally divided into many categories according to the material, the number of pieces, the theme of the illustration. A good puzzle brand will also match different laminating finishes according to the theme of the puzzle, such as matte film, tactile film, micro-glitter film, or laser foil.

• Material:
  • Paperboard (The most common, cost-effective, and eco-friendly option)
  • Wood
  • Plastic
  • Acrylic
• Pieces
  • 60
  • 260
  • 300
  • 500
  • 1000
  • 2000
• Image Themes
  • Cartoon Style
  • Anime Art
  • Religious Themes
  • Architectural Themes
  • Natural Landscapes
  • Gourmet Food
  • Portraits
  • Movie Scenes
  • Classic Paintings

what are the benefits of doing jigsaw puzzles?

Puzzles aren’t just a fun puzzle game, they’re also a relaxing meditation-like experience. Solving puzzles requires observation, concentration, and judgment. As you work through the pieces, you can clear your minds, take a break from the daily distractions, and focus on the game in front of us, not only can achieve the effect of reducing stress and anxiety, but also can exercise your thinking ability. Scientific studies have shown that playing Jigsaw Puzzles significantly reduces the risk of developing Alzheimer in old age (see How Jigsaw Puzzles Help The Brain Health >>) .

Imagine this, on a quiet, rainy holiday afternoon, you’re alone at home, enjoying the peace and quiet time with yourself. A beautiful landscape puzzle lies on your table. As time passes, scattered color begin to connect under your fingertips, soft flowers, towering snow-capped mountains, graceful animals emerging piece by piece. With each piece placed, your restless thoughts settle a little more. By the moment the last piece places, a wave of fulfillment and gratification will wash over you. Looking at the picture you put together, time seems to become slow and clear at this moment. Trivial thoughts and anxiety that has nowhere to go are quietly soothed by the focus and tranquility of this moment. Jigsaw puzzles have many meanings, but perhaps the most important meaning for adults is that when life feels fragmented, they remind you how to piece it all back together, one fragment at a time.

what’s the difference between a jigsaw puzzle and a puzzle?

The word “puzzle” refers to all kind of puzzle games, including crosswords, Sudoku, logic puzzles, Rubik’s Cubes, and ring puzzles, and so on. A “jigsaw puzzle,” however, specifically refers to the type of puzzle game that you assemble irregularly shaped pieces into a complete picture. “Jigsaw Puzzle” is a type of“Puzzle”, they have a hierarchical relationship.

Many of you may be wondering what the word “jigsaw” actually means, and where did it come from. In the early days, puzzles were made by painting an image on a wooden board and then cutting it into various shapes using a fine saw that could follow curved lines. This type saw is called a jigsaw, hence the name“Jigsaw Puzzle”.

If someone asks you if you want to play a “Puzzle game,” they’re probably referring to any kind of Puzzle game, but if someone asks you if you want to play a Jigsaw Puzzle, they mean the one shown below. A jigsaw puzzle can be a solo activity, a cozy family pastime, or even a sweet way for couples to spend time together.

who invented the jigsaw puzzle and in what year?

Jigsaw puzzle has a very long history.

Over two hundred years ago, in 1762, a London printer named John John Spilsbury came up with an ingenious idea. He tried to glue a Britain map onto the back of a thin wooden board, then cut the wooden board into many smller pieces along the county boundarie. And that was how the first puzzle was born.

what is the history of jigsaw puzzles?

When the jigsaw puzzle was first invented, they weren’t designed as toys for entertainment, but as an educational tool to teach geography to the rising middle class. In 1762, the same era that saw the height of the Grand Tour movement across Europe, map-reading was seen as a status symbol among gentlemen. Because of this, puzzles became a favored tool among the bourgeoisie and were even used in British schools as teaching aids.

However, not everyone accepted this new invention, some conservatives and critics dismissed it as a pointless pastime for the wealthy. During this time the jigsaw puzzle slowly developed through the efforts of the puzzle makers.

A few decades later, the themes of puzzle are starting to grow. In 1787, merchants added historical themes to the jigsaw puzzle, an Englishman named William Darton created a set of portraits of the English king, the jigsaw puzzle. This marked a shift from purely educational use toward a more entertaining purpose. But at that time, the puzzle was still only for the rich. The whole process of making the puzzle included hand drawing, hand coloring, hand cutting and so on. The all-hand process made the puzzle way too expensive for ordinary people, and the cost is also holding the development of jigsaw puzzle back.

In 1789, The French Revolution reshaped Europe like a storm, the old things destroyed in the storm, destroying old orders but also giving birth to new ideas. During this period, the modern puzzle was born in the hands of an Englishman named John Wallis. He further expanded the theme of the puzzle to include brightly colored landscapes, and refined the production process, replacing handcrafting with more affordable reproduction techniques, allowing puzzles to reach a wider customer。

By the early 19th century, new mass-production techniques had lowered the price barrier further and given the puzzle its clearest form. With advanced machines, they replaced the heavy wooden board with cardboard, softwood, and gave the pieces smoother edge pieces are made of cardboard. Not only improvedthe quality, but also reduced the production cost greatly. Since then, the puzzle finally can be accepted by consumers of all levels, and anyone can enjoy the fun of the puzzle.

Over the following years, the puzzle business continued to grow steadily, eventually catching on worldwide, as people around the world fell in love with this simple yet deeply soothing pastime.