A Short History of the Jigsaw Puzzle

The jigsaw puzzle is older than you might think — and its story tracks the history of leisure itself.

It started as a teaching tool (1760s)

In the 1760s, London mapmaker John Spilsbury mounted maps on wood and cut them along country borders to teach geography. These "dissected maps" were the first jigsaw puzzles — educational toys for the wealthy.

The name and the boom

The term "jigsaw" came later, from the fretsaws (often mistakenly called jigsaws) used to cut the wooden pieces. By the early 1900s, puzzles had become a craze among adults, with elaborate interlocking pieces and no guide picture — you had to work blind.

The Great Depression made them a phenomenon

In the 1930s, cheap die-cut cardboard puzzles exploded in popularity — affordable escapism during hard times. Weekly puzzle releases sold in the millions.

The modern revival

Puzzles surged again whenever people sought calm, screen-light time at home. Today the jigsaw has gone digital: thousands of images at any piece count, saved progress across devices, and real-time multiplayer — the same satisfying click, reinvented.

The appeal never changed

Whether wood, cardboard or pixels, the draw is identical: turning chaos into a complete picture, one piece at a time. It's good for your brain and deeply relaxing, now as in 1760.

Play your part in the story — start a free puzzle →