Two sided jigsaw puzzle with numbered code

June 29, 2006 11:12 AM

Puzzle Filter: Looking for any information about a puzzle I saw in the late 70's (?). As a kid I saw an explanation of a jigsaw puzzle that was distributed in a velvet bag, on a TV show (That's Incredible! maybe, or 60 Minutes). The jigsaw pieces had a code written with numbers on both sides of the puzzle pieces (white numbers on black background?).

I seem to recall that there was a hefty reward for anyone who could solve this puzzle. I always considered this one of the toughest puzzles I had ever seen (I was elementary school aged at the time).

posted by unceman to sports, hobbies, & recreation (4 comments total)

For you youngsters that have not heard of That's Incredible!:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/That's_Incredible!
posted by unceman at 11:13 AM on June 29, 2006

Was it a tessellating puzzle? This is ringing a bell for me; seems like my mom had a tessellating jigsaw that came in a velvet bag with some sort of prize promised for solving it. I thought it had an image of gold coins on at least one side, though.
posted by Addlepated at 12:55 PM on June 29, 2006

There's the Eternity jigsaw puzzle that had a huge reward, but much later then what you're looking for. Perhaps tracing a history of the eternity puzzle will get you closer.
posted by jeremias at 2:44 PM on June 29, 2006

This sort of thing is apparently called an "armchair treasure hunt" -- perhaps the proprietors of one of these sites can help you track it down.
posted by jjg at 5:18 PM on June 29, 2006