These are puzzles that rely on magnets either to stay together or as part of their mechanism. (I am excluding hidden-mechanism types using a magnet to hold a pin in place.)	Stickman Chopstick Box (#13, Second Edition) by Robert Yarger Purchased from Cubicdissection. Beautifully made from paduak and bloodwood, with maple inlays. Seven moves are required to release the two chopsticks, which are themselves beautifully inlaid.	Magnetic Bumper Cars - Popular Playthings / Huntar Co. Inc. 2006
The DigiDisc is a series of tori with mathematical symbols along their peripheries. Arrange them so that all equations are true. I wrote a computer program to solve DigiDisc.	The puzzle ball contains a central sphere - each piece has a stem ending in a magnet that attaches to the sphere.	The magnetic globe is a spherical jigsaw.
The MagnaCube is like a Soma (though not the same set of pieces), but each piece has a few magnets which constrain the solution.	The Tricky Triangle requires you to position some spheres containing magnets so that they will not mutually repel.	The pieces of the Blue Cube mate a certain way via magnets. Bits and Pieces also offers an aluminum version called "Iso-Crate" by R.D. Rose.
The object of Bumper Balls is to get the 3 balls separated	Qbism	OctaCube - 8 sub-cubes attach to a central frame. Arrange the colors per rules. There is also a black non-magnetic version.
Cube Octa I picked this up at Books Inc. in Maine	Magna	Quantum Knot
Pentera U.S. Patent 5411262 - Smith 1995	MagnaTease Classic Games Co.	Laker Cubes
(Mind Madness?) Cube-It 24 pieces - form a cube such that on the surface same colors don't touch (Saw one for sale here.)	Mind Madness Ball similar to the gray-toned ball above, but larger	Balance of Power A dexterity puzzle or a game - the blocks have detents at various positions. Arrange the blocks in an attempt to place the magnetic marbles in the detents such that they remain stable. Score higher for using more closely spaced detents. The detent arrangement shown has maximal spacing.
Dipole Dilemma by Chris Morgan Pack the 28 magnetic spheres flat in the rectangle	Mattel Force Field	Geometrix The Hexagon - Reiss Style 415 1980
Olizoid	CHKD Cube Eight aluminum pieces with embedded magnets. Not difficult, but a child will be challenged. Based on the logo, this seems to be a promo item for the Children's Hospital of the King's Daughters.	The Magic 16 ball by Idea Ocean, and the Tetrix Ball Twins from Mefferts.
King Tut Magic Mummy Get the Mummy to stay in the Sarcophagus (or hop out)	This is "Pack It In" from B&P, designed by Simon Nightingale - it is a one-cube packing puzzle! The cube and box contain hidden magnets and a mechanism that prevents the cube from seating in the container until it is properly oriented and deliberately inserted. I include this puzzle here rather than in the "Packing" category since the magnets are integral to its operation.

Since 2001, the IPP has held a design competition, now known as the Nob Yoshigahara Puzzle Design Competition. You can see the entries and results at John Rausch's site. Simon Nightingale's "One Piece Packing Puzzle" (issued by Bits and Pieces as "Pack It In") won the Puzzlers' Award in 2001.

Here are some of the other puzzles that are included on this site, appearing in the Design Competition in recent years:

2001 Puzzlers Award: One Piece Packing Puzzle (Bits and Pieces repro "Pack It In") - Simon Nightingale First Prize: Arrow Case ( Bits and Pieces "Packing Arrows") - Dai Nagata Honorable Mention: Sunflower ( available from George Miller) - Oskar van Deventer Honorable Mention: Apple - John Berkeley Honorable Mention: Walk of Ladybug - Tatuo Miyamoto Burr in Cube #1 - Jurg von Kaenel Molecule Puzzle - Joe Miller Outline Burr - Karin von Kaenel Pencil Case (Binary Arts) - Dai Nagata Trinity (Bits and Pieces "Triple Decker") - Lynn D. Yarbrough Wun-Wa-Sure - Rocky Chiaro	2002 Grand Prize: Polo Shirt Case - Edi Nagata First Prize: Corner Cube - Lee Krasnow Honorable Mention: Gold-Silver-Bronze (aka "Chain" - Hanayama) - Oskar van Deventer Key Ring (Hanayama) - Oskar van Deventer Kinato (Ravensburger) - Lawrence Lau Literal Lateral Slide - William Waite Strip Tease - Maarten Vermaak Tetralott - Markus Goetz
2003 First Prize: Binary Burr - Bill Cutler First Prize: Six Key Mine ( Bits and Pieces repro "Einstein") - R.D. Rose Honorable Mention: Camera Conundrum ( available from William Waite) - William Waite Cat Case - Edi Nagata Devil's Half Doven (Puzzlecraft) - Pavel Curtis Hexagon Kimato - Lawrence Lau Keyhole Puzzle - Rick Eason Lili (Davans) - Jose W. Diaz LiveCube - Min S. Shih Loris (Bits and Pieces repro "Corian Box" ??) - Dave Rossetti, Frank Chambers, Ken Stevens Pack 6 - Eric Fuller Salt and Pepper Shakers - Norman Sandfield, Robert Sandfield, Perry McDaniel Sandwich - Vaclav Obsivac St Mungo's Fish - James Dalgety Trapped Man - Tom Jolly Trickbox - Vaclav Obsivac	2004 Grand Prize and Puzzlers' Award: Dodecahedron Box - Kagen Schaefer Honorable Mention: Box with Key (Bits and Pieces repro "Secret Key Box") - Akio Kamei Amaze - Eldon Vaughn Button Trap - Vaclav Obsivac Cup Case - Edi Nagata Double Monad (Bits and Pieces) - Doug Engel Houses and Factories - Dick Hess Insoma - Brian Young Lucky Clover (Bits and Pieces) - Oskar van Deventer Red Spots - Ichiro Sengoku Rightangular Jam - Hirokazu Iwasawa Star Cluster - Karin von Kaenel Stickman No. 3 Puzzle Box - Robert Yarger Swissmad - Olivier Pahud Triangular Jam - Hirokazu Iwasawa Twisted's Sister (Mr. Puzzle Australia) - Brian Young
2005 Grand Prize: Radix (Hanayama) - Akio Yamamoto Honorable Mention: Edge Corner Cube II - Markus Götz Honorable Mention: Rectangular Jam - Hirokazu Iwasawa Dipole Dilemma - Chris Morgan Cubigami - George Miller and Donald Knuth Ying-Yang - Josef Pelikan and Ivan Mrkvica Sleazier - Pavel Curtis Stickman No. 5 Puzzle Box - Robert Yarger	2006 Puzzle of the Year (Puzzler's Award and Grand Prize): The Maze Burr - Kagen Schaeffer First Prize: Floppy Cube - Katsuhiko Okamoto Honorable Mention: Cover It Up - Robert Reid Honorable Mention: Sequential Star - Lee Krasnow Love Secret - Kirill Grebnev Snowflake - Robert Yarger Swiss and U.S. Cubes - Jurg von Kanel Three Trapped Sages - Ramos and Abad
2007 Puzzlers' Award and Jury First Prize: Cast Loop - Vesa Timonen The L-Bert Hall - designed by Ronald Kint-Bruynseels and made by Eric Fuller Baby Duck Case - Edi Nagata Duodeciburr - Vaclav Obsivac Four Fit - Stewart Coffin

Several puzzles can be solved using some variation of a Gray code (named after the Bell Labs researcher Frank Gray, who patented a vacuum tube using them in 1953). One classic of this type is the Patience puzzle. Another is the Towers of Hanoi. The Towers design has appeared in many forms, including the Adam's Pyramid, Journet's Brahma, and the Craze ( U.S. Patent 2738979 - Dalton 1956 ) puzzles shown here. There are a couple of other patents I've found: D135848 - Drueke 1943; also see 303946 - Ohlert 1884.

According to a couple of sources, the Towers of Hanoi puzzle was invented by the French mathematician Edouard Lucas (1843-1891) in 1883.

Check out a Lego robot that can solve the Towers of Hanoi problem at J.P. Brown's site.

A Gray code is a sequence of binary numbers in which any adjacent numbers are different in only one bit. If you count from one to seven in binary, you'll see that more than one bit changes at a time, so simply counting does not follow a Gray code...

   2 1 0  <-- column number
   4 2 1  <-- bit value in decimal (bits from left to right 2^2, 2^1, 2^0)
0) 0 0 0
1) 0 0 1  <-- so far so good, only the 1 bit (column 0) changed
2) 0 1 0  <-- uh oh, both the 1 bit and the 2 bit changed
3) 0 1 1
4) 1 0 0  <-- between 3 and 4, all 3 columns changed!
5) 1 0 1
6) 1 1 0
7) 1 1 1

Consider the Brain puzzle. The pegs are numbered 1 through 8 - peg 1 acts as the 1 bit, or column 0. Peg 2 acts as the 2 bit, or column 1. Peg 3 acts as the 4 bit, or column 2, and so forth. When a peg is pushed in towards the puzzle center, it has a value of 0; when the peg is outwards so that the corresponding flange is extended, it has a value of 1. The mechanism ensures that no peg can be moved either in or out until only the peg immediately lower than it is out and all other lower pegs are in. This is the "prime directive" for this puzzle and its relations, and can be re-stated as "No bit can toggle unless its immediate predecessor is 1 and all other predecessors are 0." The pegs must be moved following a Gray code - the sequence begins as follows: 8 4 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 (0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 (1 <-- the lowest "bit" can always be moved 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 (3 <-- we can now move the next peg 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 (2 <-- in order to advance, we must retract bit 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 (6 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 (7 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 (5 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 (4 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 (12 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 (13 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 (15 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 (14 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 (10 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 (11 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 (9 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 (8 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 (24 and so forth... ^ This sequence is the Gray code. Notice that the Gray code still encompasses all the numbers, just not in normal counting order.

The Spin-Out puzzle operates using the same principle. U.S. Patent 3637215 - Keister 1972. There are seven knobs attached to a slider - each knob acts as a bit. The knobs can be rotated between a vertical and horizontal position - let the vertical position represent a bit value of 1 and the horizontal position a bit value of 0. The slider is trapped in a sleeve until all the knobs are set to 0 (i.e. horizontal). The objective is to free the slider. The puzzle starts with the slider trapped and all knobs in their vertical position. There is only one location in the sleeve where a knob can be rotated between vertical and horizontal, and the slider must be moved to and fro to position the proper knob at that location as moves are made. The same "prime directive" applies - a knob can only be moved if the knob immediately below it (to its right) is set to 1, and all other knobs below it are set to 0 (thus allowing the slider to move such that the next knob to be rotated can be positioned at the necessary location in the sleeve). The sequence begins as follows: 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 1 1 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 and so forth...

I was very happy to obtain an original Binary Arts Hexadecimal puzzle. This is the form in which Spin-Out debuted. This has some historical significance since it is the first puzzle sold by Binary Arts!

Stack the Deck - Great American Puzzle Factory 1997. Contains a 2x3 board - Start at (0,0) and Finish at (1,2). Also contains fifteen numbered chips. Begin with the chips stacked in numerical order on Start (15 on the bottom, 1 on top). End with the chips stacked in numerical order on Finish. Move chips one by one from square to any other square, but only placing a lower number on top of a higher number, not vice versa. This is a variant of the Towers of Hanoi.

This is the "Key" puzzle by Goh Pit Khiam. It is a 2-dimensional version of Bill Cutler's Binary Burr. Its operation is along the same principals as the Gray-code based puzzles described above. I bought it from Bill Cutler's site.

Puzzles based on a picture can be printed on paper or card stock. Some are to be cut up and arranged in a particular way. Some call for you to find various figures in the pictures. Some illustrate seemingly impossible "vanishes."

One classic, popularized by Sam Loyd, is seat the riders on (or saddle) the horses (or mules). See U.S. Patent 2082943 - Dutcher 1937. Cut out the three pieces and figure out how to arrange them to depict two complete horses each bearing a rider facing the correct way.

Another classic from Sam Loyd is the rotational vanish called "Get Off the Earth." In one position, there are 13 Chinamen. Move the knob to rotate the inner disk, and one vanishes - now there are twelve! Patented and Copyrighted 1896 by Sam Loyd (563778). My copy was published as an art supplement to the Philadelphia Inquirer, Sunday July 12th 1898. Shown next is a 100th anniversary commemorative edition.

Sam Loyd re-used this puzzle device in "The Lost Jap" and "Teddy and the Lions" (neither of which I have). These are discussed in Slocum and Botermans' "Puzzles Old & New" on page 144.

The Vanishing Leprechaun is another classic vanish. Cut the card into three pieces - a long strip on the bottom, and the top into two sections. If you exchange the positions of the two top sections, there are 15 instead of 14 leprechauns. Here is an explanation.

This puzzle is called The Magic Egg. The card should be cut into four pieces along specific lines. The pieces can be rearranged so that 8, 9, or 10 eggs appear. Try the Magic Egg Puzzle on-line (requires Shockwave plug-in). An explanation of the Magic Egg puzzle.

Before: 

After: 

You can download hi-res pictures for printing here.

This is a French puzzle called Un Sage Dans Les Nuages - "A Sage in the Clouds." Four rectangular cards depict various cloudscapes. Arrange them so that the face of a wise old sage appears. I don't think the face is very well-formed. Shown in Slocum and Botermans' "New Book of Puzzles" (1992) on page 23.	Another French puzzle, called Les Quatre Vagabonds - The Four Vagabonds. Arrange the four cards to form one complete figure. Appears in Hoffmann as Chapter III No. XLI - The Man of Many Parts. Hoffmann says it is of German origin.
L'Astronome - arrange the pieces to form a five-pointed star, with an image of the astronomer.	Quelques Tours dans une Boite - In addition to the loose versions of the above puzzles, I obtained this boxed set which includes the four paper puzzles Les Quatre Vagabonds, Un Sage dans les Nuages, L'Astronome, and L'Incroyable (a paper version of the geometric fallacy L'Echiquier Fantastique). You can find an on-line version of this set here, with links to cards you can print and cut out.
Mystery Picture Something New and Novel "Lindy" Look steadily at small diamond shaped speck on nose try not to blink and count to 50 slow, then look up at the sky day or night or on a light wall and photograph will appear greatly enlarged. Keep looking at one spot for 10 seconds. Result - The actual photograph will appear and disappear several times. New! Startling! Amazing!

Find: a Queen, Lady, Traveller, Hostler, Clown, Boy, Baby, Gorilla, Monkey, 2 Donkeys, 2 Horses, Elephant, Bear, Deer, 2 Rabbits, 2 Squirrels, 3 Frogs, 5 Dogs, Otter, 2 Turtles, 10 Faces, 29 Letters, Bird, Rat, 2 Fish, Owl, &c (That's what the card says, "&c" - I guess they got tired of listing the items!)

Find: a Bear, Buffalo, Camel, Giraffe, Seal, Swan, Squirrel, Cat, Fox, Pig, Rabbit, Parrot, 2 Alligators, 4 Birds, 2 Beavers, 2 Babies, 2 Boys, 5 Cows, 2 Chickens, 2 Deer, 12 Dogs, 3 Elephants, 3 Frogs, 3 Fish, 7 Faces, 2 Goats, 7 Horses, 10 Letters, 2 Mice, 4 Men, 2 Monkeys, 2 Owls, 3 Rats, 3 Sheep, 2 Turtles, 2 Ladies.

Find: an Elk (not Miss Anne Elk :-), Peacock, Shark, Butterfly, Lion, Tiger, Rabbit, Book, Coat, Boot, Hare, Rake, Barrel, Caterpillar, Pigeon, Yard Stick, Snail, Match, Turtle, Owl, Rhino, Antelope, Watch, Skull, Cat, Cow, Giraffe, Priest, Mummy, Humpty Dumpty, Squirrel, 5 Fishes, 2 Indians, 12 Faces, 3 Mice, 11 Dogs, 3 Eagles, 5 Letters, 5 Ducks, 2 Camels, 3 Elephants, 7 Men, 2 Monkeys, 2 Cymbals, 4 Birds, 4 Bears, 4 Goats, 8 Frogs, 2 Seals, 3 Beavers, 9 Sheep, 3 Ladies, 5 Horses, 5 Pigs, 2 Chickens, 4 Alligators, 2 Boys, 2 Babies, and 2 Combs. Whew!

The Truant Boys, a follow-up to the Toll Gate series, by the same Dr. Abbey: 

Why Don't He Sink? Heat the card to find the answer... 

• You can find an on-line copy of a "Fold a Horse" puzzle based on Edborg's camel here. (WARNING: POPUPS!)
• The Creativepuzzels.nl site in general has several nice puzzles you can print and try. (WARNING: POPUPS!)
• The star-shaped folding figure used for the camel has also been used for an elephant. Another elephant.
• Another type of elephant, from four horseshoe-shaped pieces, from creativepuzzles.
• Puzzles.ca also has some puzzles you can print out and try.
• Download, print, and construct a replica of the Dr. Who Key to Time puzzle.
• From Canon's site, make a three-dimensional maze. It's a series of compartments or "caves" put together into an octahedron. Navigate a pea through the caves.
• The Complico Paper Folding Puzzle, Creations. Fold a 3x3 square of letters into a 1x1 stack that spells a desired word from top to bottom.
• The Archimedes lab site offers several nice puzzles to make, including the Slidokon.
• The Brainbinders site offers many folding puzzles. Print and trim a sheet, then using the specified number of folds, try to create a given pattern.
• William Gibbs' Tangrami. Fold a square sheet according to the diagram, then try to fold different shapes. Like an Origami Tangram.
• Dror Vomberg made a paper Rubik's Cube!
• Eric Harshbarger shows some puzzles to make.
• Robert Lang is a master of Origami. See Lang's model of the classic star burr.
• Print, cut, make eight cubes. Then form a 2x2x2 cube with the longest closed path on its surface.
• See a page of links to various folding puzzles at Thinkfun's site.
• Read an article about folding one-cut figures. Here is a link to Erik Demaine's site.
• Scout Crafts including the Cherries puzzle.
• Serhiy Grabarchuk's site Age of Puzzles.
• Vanish Puzzles at Archimedes' Lab. Buy a set of vanish puzzles from Archimedes' Lab.
• Michael Bach's Optical Illusions site.
• The Card Mine's puzzle page.

If you have Slocum and Botermans' "New Book of Puzzles" (1992) you can find several paper-based puzzles...

• Milk p.15
• La Chaine Sans Fin (the Endless Chain) p.16-17
• Willard/Johnson Prizefight p.22
• Un Sage dans les Nuages (A Sage in the Clouds) p.23
• Who Broke the Bank p.29
• Nye Best Bread p.45
• Violin p.69
• Butter-Nut Bread p.71
• Aunt Jemima p.81
• The Jayne Fishing Puzzle (In "The Book of Ingenious and Diabolical Puzzles" on p.15)

In this category I include all puzzles where the movement of pieces is constrained by rules rather than physically. Peg Solitaire is the exemplar. Peg Solitaire is a game of French origin, usually played on a 33-hole cross-shaped board known as the "English" board. At the start, every hole but the center contains a peg. The objective is to jump pegs and end with a single peg in the central hole, in the minimum number of moves.

George Bell has done a lot of analysis of Peg Solitaire in its various forms. George's website is definitely worth a visit.

Many versions and variations of peg solitaire have been made. Kohner made a version called "Hi-Q." Click here to open a window and run my Triangle Solitaire Solver.

This is the "Ancient Star Problem Puzzle." It is copyright 1949 Barters, Inc. and was issued by the Reflex Products Company of Cleveland. 36 numbered holes are arranged in a star pattern on the metal board, with radial lines, chords, and concentric circles printed to show allowable jumping paths. Various initial peg setups are given in the accompanying instructions sheet, and the challenge is to jump pegs until a single peg is left in the center hole. An insert challenged puzzlers of 1950 to send in unique problems for cash awards.

See U.S. Patent 2569637 - Loe 1951 (assigned to Barters).

This boxed set of four solitaire-type puzzles and logic games was issued by Skor-Mor. Included are: the Twenty To One Ball Puzzle (jump balls until only one remains in center), the 12 High Game (2 players move according to dice rolls), Six Man Morris, and the Nim-Wit Game.

Springbok's 1973 puzzle called "Cubits" is an interesting take on solitaire - there are 32 identical small cubes which are mixed and randomly placed on a 6x6 grid on the red base, leaving the four corner positions empty. Five sides of a cube have a pattern of arrows and the sixth the word Cubits. A cube can jump an adjacent cube that lies in the direction of an arrow on its topmost face. If the word Cubits is topmost, then the cube can jump in any direction. (Diagonal jumps are not allowed.) When a cube lands in a corner space, it is turned so Cubits is topmost. The objective is to jump until only one cube with Cubits topmost remains. This puzzle was invented by Robert J. White.

This is one of a series of six "Adult Puzzle-Games" produced by Springbok, a Hallmark division better known for jigsaws. They include:

• Cubits (shown above)
• Sweep (see below)
• Moebies (see my Packing section)
• Fitting & Proper (see my Packing section)
• Right Connections (see my Route Building section)
• Pentominoes (finally found one - see my Assembly/Polyominoes section)

This is Springbok's Sweep (1973). The pieces include simply the blue base which has a 6x6 grid of shallow peg holes numbered from 1 to 36, and a set of clear acrylic pegs. This is basically Peg Solitaire - the instructions give 21 game plans indicating which peg to remove first, and the hole on which the last peg must land.

Rather than jumping and removal, peg puzzles can have placement as their objective. In "Star Craze," you choose a hole in which to place the first peg. Each subsequent placement may be made only in a hole connected to the previously placed peg by lines on the board. The objective is to fill all the holes.

This is the Eight Point puzzle from Sherms. Use eight coins - place one on any of the eight points, then move the coin along one of the two lines from that point, to the opposite point and leave it there. Continue with another coin, placing it on one of the remaining vacant points and moving it as described, until seven of the eight points have been covered. You win if you can place seven coins as described, and can simply place the eighth coin on the last point.

Peg puzzles can also have transposition as their objective. The left-hand version of peg solitaire is similar to "Teez" offered by Tryne. I have also heard it called "Mountain Goats." Also pictured is Hop Over by Pressman. A peg can either move forward, or jump a peg in front of it (but neither is removed). The object is to exchange the two sets of pegs - pretend they are two lines of mountain goats traveling in opposite directions on a narrow mountain path, who need to pass. See U.S. Patent 243688 - Bullard 1881.

This is a vintage British metal puzzle called Draught Board - identical in principle to Hop Over.

Balance the Wheel, No. 108 "An L. J. Gordon creation" by Peterson Games of Sacramento CA, 1972. The box claims it is "A puzzle which becomes increasingly difficult as you get closer and closer to the ultimate objective." A transposition puzzle akin to Hop Over, around a circular track, with six pegs of each of two colors.

Kohner's Switch poses several transposition challenges: 

This is "Pinwheel:27" 

Cross (101)	Tri-Puzzler (102)	Reversal (103)	3-Square (104) eq. to Crestline's Cross Over and Skor-Mor's Switch
Hoyle Double Diamond (eq. to Setko 105) U.S. Patent 2778640 - Calvin O. Brown 1957	Bullseye (106) Jump in any straight line, leave last peg in center.	Kan-Yu (#8107) U.S. Patent 2712938 - Calvin O. Brown 1955	Zig Zag (108) U.S. Patent 2778639 - Calvin O. Brown 1957
Mill (201)	Setko Puzzler 67 I have the Hoyle version called Why	Setko Fore and Aft I've seen a cheap version of this, called "Enigma." See U.S. Patent 522250 - Emerson 1894.	Crestline Square Peg (eq. to Skor-Mor's Lonely Peg)
Setko X (?)	Setko promotional puzzles This pair of puzzles was distributed as a promotion in 1971.	3-Square, Mill, and Cross were included in this set I obtained.	Setko Puzzlers set Tri, Reversal, Double Diamond, and Bullseye were offered in a boxed set.
Bullseye II	U.S. Patent 2778641 - Calvin O. Brown 1957

Rubik's Triamid	Switchback - Binary Arts	Think and Jump - Pressman	Thinkfun's Stormy Seas
This is Binary Arts' Lunar Lockout. You can read about the genesis of this puzzle and a computer analysis of it on John Rausch's site. You can play Lunar Lockout on-line here.	Pete's Pike - Thinkfun An updated version of Lunar Lockout.	TipOver - Thinkfun	Hoppers - Binary Arts
Leapin' Lizards - Binary Arts	Hot Spot - Thinkfun

This puzzle is called Right On and was produced by Skor Mor. There are five colored pegs each of which can hold seven discs. There are twenty discs, four of each peg color. The instructions give an initial arrangement of the discs. The goal is to get all four discs of each color onto their corresponding pegs. You can only transfer one or a stack of two adjacent discs at a time, and the bottom moving disc must land either on an empty peg of its color, or on another disc of its color. It can be done in 26 moves.

Right On appears identical to this 1984 puzzle I do not have, from Marks and Spencer, called "Stack It."

The Olympic WanderRings seem to be a version of the same puzzle. They were produced by Logical Toys in Hungary as a souvenir of the 100th Olympic Games, held in Atlanta.

Here are the "cube snakes" - unit cubes linked together so that they pivot in only certain ways, and fold up into a cube shape, usually 3x3x3 but some 4x4x4. In this group are:

Highly Strung Pentangle	Cubra I have all 5: Purple, Orange, Red, Blue, Green	Raintree
The Anaconda Cube	Magic Cube Snake aka Kibble Cube	Charles Phillips' "Brain Box" comes with a small wooden cube snake and a booklet of brainteasers.

Another type of folding puzzle is the "plate" puzzle exemplified by Rubik's Magic. A group of independent 2-sided grooved tiles, with embedded picture cards, are connected by a loop of strong fishing line. The stringing pattern is complex, and permits the tiles to be folded around and onto each other in various ways. The objective is to achieve a particular picture pattern and/or shape.

Take a look at Pantazis' site - he has created many original folding plate puzzle designs!

Rubik's Magic - the original 8-tile, black verison. Newer versions are red. Read about Rubik's Magic at Jurgen Koeller's site.	Rubik's Magic Master 12 tiles	Rubik's Magic Create the Cube	Simpsons novelty Rubik's Magic
I got this custom 4-tile magic from Juozas Granskas at IPP26.	Another novelty version picturing a scantily-clad woman.	Betcha Can't is a fairly rare version with hexagonal plates.

This is the "Pick the Pickaninnies" postcard puzzle, patented June 4, 1907 ( U.S. Patent 856196 - Lehman 1907 - CCL/273/155) and copyright 1907 by the Ullman Manufacturing Co. of New York.

This puzzle is representative of a time in the history of the United States during which what are today unconscionable racist sentiments were part of everyday life.

I have a copy sporting a canceled one cent Ben Franklin stamp, postmarked Feb. 4 1908 out of Philadelphia. The puzzle consists of a single card with six flaps that will fold over a central rectangle. One side of the central rectangle is the face of the postcard. On its interior face is an advertisement for Harry H. Kurtz furniture of Philadelphia. One flap depicts a black woman who is saying, "Show me all dem eleben pickaninnies at one time. I don't want to see no white trash." This flap also has eight holes and three black children's faces on it. The other flaps have various patterns of holes and faces of black children and white children. The objective as stated on the card is to "Arrange the flaps, by placing one over another, in such a manner as to show only the eleven pickaninnies."

This style of puzzle has appeared in less offensive versions, for instance the face of Danny Kaye was used to advertise his film "The Inspector General" and a can of peas. In that version only seven faces must appear. Below is a version I made for you to cut out and try. Make windows wherever it says "cut out" and remember to separate the side flaps.

Power Puzzles is a set of ten colorful folding puzzles made of heavy plasticized stock. The designs are copyright by the Ivan-Concept Corporation (Ivan Moscovich), and the set was distributed by Discovery Toys Inc. Each puzzle is to be folded to achieve some specific pattern.

This style of puzzle has been used more recently to challenge you to "Find the Fifth Dinosaur" - Saddam Hussein.

Also see: fold one way for a cow, another for a horse (I don't have this): U.S. Patent 2327875 - Edborg 1943.

Yoshi's Cube A flexible array of shapes connected by tough plastic sheets. Can be folded into a cube and other shapes.	Shinsei Twin Comets or Shinsei Mystery Two units - either can be folded to make the first stellation of the rhombic dodecahedron, or a cube. Each shape is hollow - the stellation will fit inside the cube. This is a copy of a version called the Yoshimoto Cube that was first issued in Silver and Gold colors. Invented by Naoki Yoshimoto in 1971.	Rubik's Maze
Rubik's Snake is not so much a puzzle as a plaything. Twist it into different shapes.	Here is a folding metal "puzzle" (more of a toy) known as "Heaven's Orb."	Happy Cubes by Adult Games.
Triamant	Can-Do Linked blocks in the shape of a can. See U.S. Patent 6637138 - Prost 2003	Block-Aids Identical to Happy Cubes by Adult Games - just blue.
Snoop Cube Fold the eight linked blocks into various shapes, culminating in a cube. Purchased from Torito.	Mag-Nif Curious Cubes 1982	The Starbix folding puzzle/toy, by Alan H. Schoen and issued by Bandai 1987.
Cubigami 7 from George Miller. Designed by George Miller and Donald Knuth. This is one of the few puzzles that stays on my desk - I find myself frequently picking it up and playing with it. A clever arrangement of hinged squares in a flat sheet, can be folded into each of the 3D tetra-cube shapes except for the 1x2x2 block.	Blue Cubigami from George Miller. This version has four magnetic blocks and a plastic wrapping with embedded metal plates. Arrange the four blocks into one of the tetracube shapes then find a way to wrap them. This version allows the 1x2x2 shape to be wrapped since leaves of the wrapping can overlap. A gift from George - thanks!	Der Umstulpbare Wurfel (the Invertible Cube) by Paul Schatz of Switzerland.

Here one has to make a careful distinction between games and puzzles. I believe all of these qualify as puzzles...

My first and still my favorite electronic puzzle was a gift from Darcy, the XL-25. In principle it is very close to the later Lights Out - but IMHO it has the best sound effect and the best coordination of that sound effect with the push of the buttons.	Shifty - Tiger 1989 (Read more at the Handheld Games Museum.)	Tiger has marketed several versions of Lights Out. You can also get a version for your Palm PDA.
Luminations rather than button pushes it requires tilting	Nemesis Factor	Orbix
Genius Milton Bradley 1980	Merlin Milton Bradley	Lite 3 - Tiger
	Rubik's Revolution

From James Dalgety - the Rabbiduck. Is this a Rabbit or a Duck? Don't answer until you click on the image...

Here are some patents to early impossible object puzzles:

• D22479 - Bates 1893
• D116469 - Wightman 1939

There have been many World's Fairs held since 1756. I have included only a small number of the better-known Fairs in the table below. Some puzzles are among the memorabilia available from the various Fairs. Some of these items are shown on other pages, but I thought it would be interesting to assemble them here, too.

1851 Great Exhibition London, England	The Crystal Palace is the icon of this fair, but I know of no puzzles attributed to this fair.
1876 Centennial Exposition Philadelphia, PA (Take a tour!) Or, read a book about the expo.	A set of jigsaws (I don't have this).
1889 Exposition Universelle Paris, France	This fair featured the Eiffel Tower, but I haven't run across any puzzles.
1893 The World's Columbian Exposition Chicago, IL	The 1893 Columbian Exposition, by all accounts, was a fantastic event. The buildings were clad in white plaster and the grounds were known as the "White City." Peter Nepstad has created a text adventure game that puts you at the Fair. Read some reviews. Download a demo. Also see The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson. There were a series of "White City" trick-opening still banks put out by Nicol & Co. of Chicago. See U.S. patent 528018 - Nicol 1894. (I don't have any except as noted.) No. 1 Barrel No. 2 Pail (I have this one.) No. 3 Large Barrel No. 10 No. 12 No. 326 No. 357 Basket On the 3, 10, 12, and 326 banks, the wingnut "key" was stored in a receptacle molded into the bottom and initially covered by a label. The label warns salesmen not to reveal the secret of opening the safe until after the sale is made. There were several other puzzles sold in conjunction with the fair: The Columbus' Egg Puzzle See my Dexterity page. The Ferris Wheel made its debut at the Fair. There are at least two versions of this dexterity puzzle - one called the Ferris Wheel, and the other called the "Firth Wheel." The Firth Wheel background says "California Midwinter International Exposition." (I don't have either.) Magnetic Eggs See my Dexterity page. These lettered blocks might comprise a sliding-block type puzzle. Columbian Exposition Picture Puzzles An interlocking border with push-fit interior pieces. Picture Blocks
1901 Pan-American Exposition Buffalo, NY	The Stars and Crescent puzzle was stamped to commemorate the 1901 Pan American Expo in Buffalo NY. I have this puzzle, but it's not stamped.
1904 The Louisiana Purchase Exposition St. Louis, Missouri	I have the Key, the Up-To-You, and the sliding piece puzzle. I don't have the Jug or the furniture jigsaw. Robert Hendershott (b.1898 d.2005) actually attended the 1904 fair and compiled a seminal catalog listing scads of memorabilia from the fair. I borrowed a copy from my library, but sadly it did not mention the Key, nor any other puzzle beyond the Up-To-You glass dexterity puzzle. Here is another interesting puzzle from the Expo I saw (I don't have this) - it's a pair of coins with slots in them. I found a U.S. patent describing the puzzle and the method of [un]linking them with a (missing) strap: 748245 - Willey & Barton 1903
1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition San Francisco, CA
1933 Century of Progress Chicago, IL	There were several puzzles associated with this fair. The Scrambled Eggs puzzles came in different colors and levels of difficulty, as well as a smaller version called "Bantam Eggs." I've found several. There were several other 3D jigsaws, including a "Broken Heart" and a Sphere. There was a Chinese-style building called the "Temple of Jihol" and a corresponding assembly puzzle. I don't have this. Boxed dexterity puzzles included the Skyride and the Havoline Thermometer, by James R. Irvin & Co. I don't have these. A series of "Tom Saw" jigsaw puzzles including Fort Dearborn, and the "Enchanted Island." I don't have these. There was also a very interesting pinball game which constructed a jigsaw as the player progressed. One was offered at auction a while ago with a $3500 asking price but it did not sell. I don't have this, but Jerry Slocum has one. Another jigsaw. I don't have this. An interesting 3D jigsaw puzzle fort. I don't have this.
1939 New York World's Fair NY, NY	The Trylon Perisphere is the icon for this fair. A small interlocking puzzle of the Trylon Perisphere was issued and became the forerunner of the keychain puzzle. There was also a version in metal - I have the plastic version. I have the Pageant of the States puzzle; I don't have the Furniture Jigsaw or Jig-O-Pin.
1962 Century 21 Exposition Seattle, WA	I don't have this.
1964,65 New York World's Fair NY, NY (NOTE: Not sanctioned by the BIE.)	I don't have this.
1967 Expo '67 Montreal, Canada

Here is a brief history of "ancient" puzzles, and of "modern" puzzle crazes.

What is the oldest mechanical puzzle? We shall probably never really know - after all, the object itself or a record of it would have to have been preserved, found, and accurately dated. Only objects made of robust material, such as ceramics, are likely to have survived their trip down through the ages. And even if an object were found, without some written or pictographic record of its intended use, we can only surmise that it served the purpose of a mechanical puzzle. That said, below are some candidates (all dates are, of course, approximate). I have included some mathematical, logical, and word puzzles, too. (Jerry Slocum made several helpful comments in private correspondance.) David Singmaster has undertaken a far more detailed Chronology of Recreational Mathematics.

• 20,000BC-9000BC - Dominic Olivastro, in his book Ancient Puzzles suggests the Ishango bone dating to either 9000BC or, based on newer dating techniques, perhaps 20000BC is the oldest puzzle, but aside from its puzzling markings it’s not a very satisfying candidate to me and is more probably a calculation aid.
• 2500BC - Mohenjo-Daro "Pick-Me-Up" artifact
• 1900BC - Labyrinth of Pharaoh Amenemhet III near Lake Moeris in Egypt
• 1700BC - Phoenician Puzzle Jugs in Cyprus - part of the Cesnola Collection at the Metropolitan Museum in New York, and the Moshe Dayan Collection in the Jerusalem Museum in Israel
• ca. 1650BC - Rhind Papyrus - includes a version of the "Road to St. Ives" mathematical puzzle.
• 1400BC - carvings made by workmen on the temple at Kurna (e.g. Morris board, Mill, Pentalpha)
• 650BC-400BC - Shu Ching Lo Shu 3x3 Magic Square
• 200BC - Loculus of Archimedes / Stomachion
• 1st Century A.D. - first 4x4 Magic Square, in India
• 1st Century A.D. - Word Squares in Pompeii
  

  ROTAS OPERA TENET AREPO SATOR

  Translates as "Arepo, the sower, watches over his works."
• 800 - Alcuin of York - River Crossing Problems 17,18,19
• 900 - Abu Kamil - Book of Precious Things
• 983 - 5x5 and 6x6 Magic Squares
• 1202 - Fibonacci's Liber Abaci
• ca. 1500 - Tartaglia (Niccolo Fontana) - measuring wine 3,5,8->4/4
• 1500 - Patience Puzzle - Luca Pacioli De Viribus Quantitatus problem #107
• 1514 - Albrecht Durer - Melencolia I
• 1545 - first Geometric Vanish - Serlino Libro Primo d'Architettura
• 1557 - Alliance/Victoria tanglement puzzle - Cardano De Rerum Varietate
• 1624 - first Shilhouette Problems - van Etten Recreation Mathematique
• 1678 - Peg Solitaire - Leibniz
• 1689 - oldest reference to traditional six-piece burr
• 1690 - Hedge Maze at Hampton Court Palace, designed by George London and Henry Wise in 1689
• 1700 - 18th century - Rebuses ?
• 1725 - Ozanam - Cherries Puzzle, Solomon's Seal
• 1749 - Les Amusemens - first dissection of cross into Zs and Ls, Egyptian Puzzle
• 1760 - Spilsbury invents jigsaw
• 1848 - Bezzel proposes the Eight Queens Problem
• 1850s - Matchstick Puzzles
• 1857 - Icosian Puzzle (W. Hamilton) - tour the 12 vertices of an icosahedron, each once
• 1880 - Henry Luers patents first dissected checkerboard
• 1883 - French mathematician Edouard Lucas invents the Tower of Hanoi puzzle
• 1890s - Kumiki Puzzles invented by Tsunetaro Yamanaka
• 1892 - first edge-matching puzzle patented, by E.L. Thurston
• 1893 - MacMahon Colored Cubes
• 1900 - first "Instant Insanity"-type puzzle, The Katzenjammer Puzzle, patented by Frederick Schossow.
• 1903 - first dissected T
• 1913 - R. Journet patents Spoophem, the first centrifugal puzzle
• 1936 - Piet Hein invents the Soma Cube
• 1940 - Johnson patents two-piece dissection of tetrahedron
• 1970s - Stewart Coffin begins producing interlocking puzzles
• 1970s - Uwe Meffert invents Pyraminx
• 1974 - Erno Rubik invents Rubik's Cube
• 1975 - Greg Bright's hedge maze planted at Longleat House; read an article about mazes; Play NAVIGATI online.

See a timeline of games and puzzles here.

Meffert hosts a timeline of puzzles written by Prof. David Joyner here.

See Puzzlehistory.com (focused on jigsaws).

Read a history of mathematical games and recreations here.

Check the Usenet rec.puzzles archive.

See a large collection of images of word games here.

See the MSN Encarta entry on Puzzles here.

Dictionary.com defines "craze" as "a popular or widespread fad, fashion, etc." and as a verb, "to cause to become mentally deranged or obsessed." As can be seen from the history of ancient puzzles above, people through recorded history - even workmen building the pyramids - have enjoyed puzzles. Many puzzles have made it into the historic record - often recorded by and for an intellectual minority - those who could read and write. However, few puzzles seem to have created the kind of fervor that causes masses of people to lose sleep and ignore their obligations, thereby instigating a full-fledged craze.

I believe it is not surprising that crazes seem to be a relatively modern phenomenon - it is only recently that there exists a mass population with sufficient leisure time to devote to "frivolous" pursuits, manufacturing capability sufficient to produce enough copies of a puzzle, transportation speedy enough to spread the puzzle widely within a relatively short period of time, and communications media sophisticated enough to report on the craze while it is occurring, often intensifying the craze by exposing more people to the puzzle. Records must survive that document such widespread popularity and, hopefully, chronicle the craze.

Here are some puzzles for which records do exist - the exceptional manias are highlighted, and some lesser crazes are included, too:

• ca. 1640 - Anagrams - King Louis XIII of France appoints a Royal Annagrammatist, Thomas Billon; See the alt.anagrams FAQ here.
• 1697 - Peg Solitaire - appears in an engraving of the Princess de Soubise, and was written about by Leibniz as early as 1678 (per Singmaster).
• 1780 - Catel's Cabinet established in Berlin
• 1815-1822 - Tangrams - enjoyed by Lewis Carroll, Edgar Allen Poe, Napoleon
• 1880 - The Gem (Fifteen, or Boss) Puzzle
• 1889 - Pigs in Clover - invented by Charles M. Crandall, of Waverly, N.Y. See article at U. of Waterloo / Avedon Museum.
• 1890 - Lemon's Everybody's Illustrated Book of Puzzles published
• 1892 - Rouse Ball's Mathematical Recreations and Essays published, revised by Coxeter in 1939
• 1893 - Hoffmann's Puzzles Old and New published
• 1895-1914 - Latin Squares - 9x9 by Mayniel appeared in La France on 7/6/1895
• 1907-1910 - First Jigsaw Craze
• 1914 - Sam Loyd's Cyclopedia of 5000 Puzzles published
• 1917 - Dudeney's Amusements in Mathematics published
• 1921 - MacMahon's New Mathematical Pastimes published
• 1924 - Crosswords - First published by Arthur Wynne on 12/31/1913 in the New York World. See it here. In 1924, Simon & Schuster put out a collection and launched a craze. Read the history of the crossword here.
• 1928 - Wyatt's Puzzles in Wood published
• 1932-1933 - Second Jigsaw Craze (Depression era)
• 1942 - Filipiak's 100 Puzzles - How to Make and Solve Them published
• 1946 - Wyatt's Wonders in Wood published
• 1965 - Solomon Golomb's Polyominoes published
• 1970s - Maze Books craze - see Wikipedia article.
• 1978 - Creative Puzzles of the World published - no twisty puzzles yet!
• 1978 - the first IPP held
• 1979-1983 - Rubik's Cube - invented by Erno Rubik in 1974, patented 1977; On cover of Scientific American in 1979
• 1987 - Slocum & Botermans' Puzzles Old and New published
• 1984-1988 - Maze craze in Japan - Adrian Fisher article here.
• 1990 - Stewart Coffin's The Puzzling World of Polyhedral Dissections published
• 2004-present - SuDoKu - developed by Howard Garns and first published in 1979 by Dell Magazines. Read some history here. Wikipedia article here.

Several manufacturers around the world, from the late 1700's onwards to the present day, have issued collections of puzzles in boxed sets. Perhaps the most sought-after are collections of puzzles made from ivory, arranged inside lacquered boxes, exported from China in the 1800's. One such set is shown at left - sadly I do not own it - it sold for over $4000! The Hordern-Dalgety Puzzle Museum site has an article on Chinese Puzzle Sets. There is also an article on the British firm John Jacques & Son, who made boxed sets of puzzles, indoor and outdoor games, and other items. Jacques of London was founded in 1795 and is still around today!

Other boxed sets of puzzles have come from French manufacturers, such as the "Jeux Nouveaux" set shown at right (I do not own). In the U.S. the venerable toy store F.A.O. Schwartz issued boxed puzzle sets (I have one shown below).

This boxed set contains a Soma cube, a Star, and a Cube Snake.	The "Aha Brainteaser Classics" set from Thinkfun contains a nice introductory survey of simple mechanical puzzles, with hint cards. Here is a nice history of some of the puzzles included in this set.	This compendium is called "Mixed Up."
This compendium was made by Sherms of Bridgeport CT (the included instruction sheet clearly indicates so, as do the several appearances of the leering devil), but branded on the box lid by Kellogg's of Springfield MA (probably a department store). Although the lid says "Wire Puzzles," the set contains the Perigal 4-piece square, the classic T dissection, Loyd's buttonhole pencil, the 8-point puzzle, a sitting Doggie puzzle, several metal tanglements, and a 14-piece checkerboard dissection called the "Checker Board Problem" made from thick cardboard in blue and red (Haubrich 14.14.3-5, pieces on page 165, listing on page 168 #11). The instruction sheet says "This book of puzzles explains others besides those in your set." It's not at all clear whether the current contents are the original contents. The instructions sheet lists: Cover the Spot Doggie Puzzle Heart Puzzle The T Puzzle Triangle Puzzle Ring & Coil Horse Shoe Boo-Boogy Man Puzzle Nail Puzzle Pretzel Puzzle Knotted Rings Puzzle Two Twist Puzzle The Question Puzzle Spider Web Puzzle Pencil and Loop	This is the "Party Puzzle Box Supreme," a compendium of several puzzles, from George E. Schweig & Son of Philadelphia PA. The box is in poor shape, but it contains several interesting puzzles. The box contains three trays / levels. The first tray contains four sliding block puzzles in good shape: Schweig's Trans-Atlantic Puzzle, The Flying Puzzle, The Traffic Jam Puzzle, and Ma's Puzzle. (I bought this to obtain the Trans-Atlantic puzzle.) The next tray contains eight hard wire tangles, some of which are incomplete, and a dexterity puzzle called "Who Catches Us?" The last layer contains the classic T dissection (missing one small part), "The Wonder Puzzle" (a tangram variant, missing a block or two and a booklet), a "Spoophem" type puzzle, six more tangles including Patience, and a six-piece burr, the same "Puzzle of Puzzles" as in the "Tricks and Puzzles" compendium. There is also an instruction sheet.	This set is called "Tricks and Puzzles for Young and Old" and I cannot find additional provenance info even on the instruction sheet. One of the included tricks, however, called "Mystifying Mind Reading," is labeled No. 1 N 136 Copyright 1928 N. S. Co. Chicago. Also, many of the individual item packages say "Made in Japan." The set includes: the aforementioned Mystifying Mind Reading trick, which contains six cards having pictures of 15 presidents; a traditional six-piece burr puzzle called "The Puzzle of Puzzles" made in Japan (pieces 1, 154, 256x2, 1024x2), four copies of the ring and clip hard wire tangle, two copies of a hard wire tangle similar to offset keys, plate metal horseshoes, two copies of "No. X 2234 Coin or Disc Thru Hole," "The Magic Sex Indicator" (a plumb bob), an "X-Ray" tube, a card trick (incomplete), and a sheet of instructions. The instructions describe: Horse-Shoe Puzzle Nail Puzzle Chinese Puzzle X-Ray Collegiate Matches Card Trick (two twists) (two clips) (twists with straight handles) Three RIngs Puzzle (offset keys var.) Key Puzzle (two Gs) (ring and clip) Mind Reading Card Trick

I'm not sure what might be missing, but the following items were also included:

• a few simple wire tanglements (most missing)
• Chinese Rings
• The Bashful Lock (I Will Open Behind Your Back)
• 6-piece Star
• Dipsy Ball (aka Moses' Cradle)
• Ball in Cage interlocking puzzle
• The 15 sliding puzzle (it fell apart)
• The 'T' Dissection
• Kumiki Cube