From world champions to enthusiasts, the world of puzzles has become a playground for impressive records. Manufacturers are becoming increasingly daring, constantly pushing the boundaries of what is possible to satisfy those who have made puzzling their ultimate challenge. Whether it's the world's largest puzzle, monochrome creations, or even innovative transparent designs, get ready to discover some amazing feats. Drum roll, please: here are the world's greatest puzzle records!
The World’s Largest Jigsaw Puzzle
In 2011, the record for the world's largest jigsaw puzzle in terms of number of pieces was set in Vietnam. This giant puzzle, consisting of 551,232 pieces, was assembled by 1,600 students from Ho Chi Minh City University of Economics. It took no less than 17 hours of intense concentration to reveal a six-petaled lotus flower on a surface measuring 14.85 x 23.20 meters. But this record only concerns the number of pieces. The world's largest puzzle in terms of surface area was made in Dubai in 2018: it has only 13,320 pieces, but covers an area of more than 6,122 m².
Mini Puzzles with Fewer Than 100 Pieces
Far from the world's largest puzzle, mini puzzles offer a whole new kind of challenge and are much more practical if you don't have a stadium! These fascinating miniatures are ideal for lovers of precision and detail. The smallest ones are produced by the Selegiochi brand: they consist of 99 pieces that, once assembled, take up less space than a smartphone. Ideal for enthusiasts who want to take their hobby with them wherever they go!
Giant Jigsaw Puzzles for Extreme Challenges
Looking for a challenge? The French brand Grafika invites you to travel the world of art with Travel around Art and its 54,000 pieces delivered in a real travel suitcase! In 2024, German puzzler Hans-Josef Schaadt managed to complete it in just 99 days. But if you'd like to tackle the world's biggest jigsaw puzzle available for purchase, take on artist Eric Dowdle's 60,000-piece What a Wonderful World. Don't worry, it's divided into 60 parts of 1,000 pieces each!
The Most Difficult Puzzle in the World
An impossible puzzle? Created in 2007 by British mathematician Christopher Monckton, Eternity II is considered the world's most difficult puzzle. It's not the largest, but it's so challenging that a prize of £2 million was offered to anyone who could solve it! Its 256 square pieces don't fit together like in a traditional puzzle, but are placed on a grid by matching their edges. The number of solutions is estimated at 20,000, but so far, none have ever been found!
👉 See also: World Puzzle Championships
Monochrome Puzzles: The Ultimate Test of Patience
Monochrome puzzles require patience, patience, and... more patience! Whether it's White Heaven or Black Hell, they're a real challenge! But still less so than the unusual puzzle The Accident, with its 215 pieces cut from transparent acrylic, all in different shapes! Think a color gradient would be easier? Then you haven't tried Clemens Habicht's 1,000 Colors, where each piece has a unique color among the other 999!
The World’s Most Expensive Puzzle
The record for the world's most expensive jigsaw puzzle was set in 2005 at an auction benefiting the non-profit Golden Retriever Foundation, for the impressive sum of $27,000. The 467-piece wooden work was handcrafted by American artist Rachel Page Elliott, who has won numerous awards for her skills. The name of the buyer has never been made public...
Fastest Jigsaw Puzzle Records
The world champion in puzzle speed is a 26-year-old Spaniard, Alejandro Clemente León, who solved a 500-piece puzzle in just 34 minutes and 25 seconds at the world's largest competition. That's equivalent to fitting one piece... every 4 seconds! The speed record for a 1,000-piece puzzle is held by Sarah Mills from the UK, who completed it in 1 hour and 40 minutes at the 2020 British Championship. If you're a puzzle enthusiast (or just confident!) and fancy trying to beat this score, go for it and assemble the London Calling puzzle!
👉 Also read: How long does it take to complete a puzzle?
At Jour Férié (although we are impressed by these world records in puzzle solving...), we advocate the pleasure of slowing down and disconnecting, savoring every moment spent assembling our creations. Our collection is designed to invite you to relax, far from the race for performance, in order to rediscover all the benefits of jigsaw puzzles.
Take the time to immerse yourself in our world, in which our biggest puzzles have only 1,000 pieces, but where each one finds its place at your own pace, in simple, authentic pleasure. It's up to you to set your own puzzle record, like the longest moment of uninterrupted calm, for example...
👉 See also: How many puzzles are manufactured?
Sources :
The Green Class - 1000-piece puzzle
The Fridge Door - 1000-piece puzzle
Eating Out - 1000-piece puzzle
Nothing to Wear - 1000-piece puzzle
