Artifact Puzzles

American Toy Company

Artifact Puzzles is a manufacturer of wooden jigsaw puzzles operating out of Port Townsend, Washington (previously in Fremont, California).[1] The business was founded in 2009[2] by University of Washington electrical engineering professor Maya Gupta, and was originally based in Seattle, Washington.[3] Unlike traditional wooden jigsaw puzzles which are hand-cut by jigsaw,[4][5] Artifact Puzzles laser-cuts 1/4" thick high quality 3-ply environmentally-friendly plywood and uses soy-based inks.[6]

The puzzle pieces are designed by an artist for each new puzzle,[7] and do not follow a consistent style of cut. For example, some of their puzzles have traditional knob connectors, while others have piece connectors shape like clouds, hearts, bird feet, horse hooves, and ancient Greek symbols. Like traditional wooden jigsaw puzzles, most of their puzzles have "whimsy pieces", which are pieces shaped like recognizable objects.[7] These pieces are designed to match the theme of each puzzle, and range from a cow jumping over a moon in one of their Daniel Merriam puzzles, to pieces shaped like ballerinas in their Degas puzzle. The company has designed and manufactures over 250 different puzzles of a broad range of art, with an unusually large selection of whimsical neo-surrealist art and 16th century art.

## References

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1. ^ Linda Hubbard Gulkar (April 14, 2014). "Good News For Jigsaw Puzzle Fans". InMenlo.
2. ^ Tom Cutrofello (February 2010). "Pieces of Art: Cutting Edge Jigsaws". Games Magazine. Kappa Publishing Group, Inc.
3. ^ Peter Kelley (June 22, 2011). "Elegance, engineering combine in Maya Gupta's high-end jigsaw puzzles". UW Today. Archived from the original on June 27, 2011.
4. ^ Jennifer A. Kingson (December 6, 2010). "Eye for Art and Artistry Amid Jigsaw's Jumble". The New York Times.
5. ^ Williams, Anne D. (2004). The Jigsaw Puzzle, Piecing Together A History. Berkley Books. p. 270\. ISBN 0-425-19820-0.
6. ^ NESSEL (May 3, 2012). "Artifact Puzzles Bring Puzzling Pieces With New Old Fashioned Jigsaw Puzzles".
7. ^ a b Chris O'Brien (Dec 7, 2011). "Pieces Fall Into Place". San Jose Mercury News.

## External links

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* Official website

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