Author: puzzler1909

I share my time between my native Helsinki (Finland) and Dortmund (Germany), where my football team Borussia Dortmund lives. This blog is about my puzzling actvities in these cities.

Olympic Helsinki 1952, 2021-05-12

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This lovely cartoon map of Helsinki was commissioned by the Helsinki tourist board for the 1952 Olympics. It was never used at the time, but fortunately, the Helsinki City Museum later released it as a puzzle. It was actually quite difficult even though I know the city well. One missing piece.

Olympic Helsinki 1952 by Aarne Nopsanen, Helsinki City Museum, 1000 pieces. Completed on May 12, 2021.

The Zoo, located on an island. Since 1972 there is a bridge, but in 1952 the Zoo was only accessible by ferry.

Suomenlinna, the 18th Century sea fortress is still one of Helsinki’s most popular tourist attractions.

Places are marked on the map with numbers, but there was no key to these on the box. Here, number 4 is the Helsinki Cathedral, 6 is the University and 7 is the National Library. The statue of a lady in the foreground is Havis Amanda (or Manta for short), a much loved lady at whose feet great sporting victories are often celebrated.

Sisters of the Sun, 2021-01-17

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Fantastic painting by American artist Keith Mallet. The photo doesn’t quite do justice to the gorgeous colours.

The puzzle was my first of the Turkish brand Anatolian, and the quality is great. The pieces are sturdy and the fit is good, pieces only fit where they belong, and there is a good mix of piece shapes. It says Anatolian on the box, but some stores list Anatolian puzzles as Perre – maybe two brands from the same manufacturer, or they changed the brand name. Anyway, I was very happy happy with this, even though it was more difficult than I had anticipated (story of my life…).

Sisters of the Sun by Keith Mallet, Anatolian, 1000 pieces. Completed on January 17, 2021.

Sweden, 2021-01-05

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Vintage Ravensburger from 1976 with a map of Sweden, regional traditional dress and regional flowers. This was a lot of fun, and great quality, of course. All the pieces are still there, but along the bottom there is some damage that looks like it was done with adhesive tape, and a few pieces probably got wet at some point. All in all a great puzzle!

Sweden, Ravensburger, 1000 pieces. Completed on January 5, 2021.

[Over the Rooftops], 2021-01-16

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Another nameless Peliko puzzle. Since there is no title, I don’t know from what city this is, but I think it’s in Finland, since Peliko is a Finnish brand. One website had it listed as view over Turku, but there are houses like this in many Finnish cities, most of them built in the 30’s and 40’s.

Anyway, as a puzzle, this was very enjoyable even though Peliko quality is not that good, but the image was great.

[Over the Rooftops], Peliko, 500 pieces. Completed on January 16, 2021.

Historical Map of the World, 2021-05-02

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Great puzzle with an image by Verbiest from 1636. Wikipedia does know one Verbiest who was (among other things) a carthographer, but he would have been 13 in 1636. Perhaps this map is based on one from 1636, but actually made later? Or it’s another Verbiest. The map looks pretty good for Europe, Africa and parts of the Americas, but East Asia is pretty wonky, and Australia is present only as a hypothesis (Terra Australis Incognita, Unknown southern land). A lot of fun as a puzzle!

Historical Map of the World by Verbiest, Ravensburger, 1500 pieces. Completed on May 2, 2021.

View from the Conservatory, 2021-01-20

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It’s been a while since I did a Schmidt puzzle, and was reminded again what an excellent brand this is. A few years ago I did a Schmidt where the fit was looser than usual and the precision of the cut wasn’t all that good, but this was fantastic. The fit is a bit tighter than Ravensburger or Heye, which is fine when working on the puzzle, but a bit annoying when taking it apart, unless you’re prepared to leave it practically assembled for the next puzzler.

Anyway, this was enjoyable from start to finish. Great image and great quality!

View from the Conservatory by Dominic Davison, Schmidt, 1000 pieces. Completed on January 20, 2021.

The Oarsmen’s Breakfast, 2021-04-24

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Funny how it all looks so clear when you’re finished, but this was quite difficult, actually. Still, it’s a lovely painting, and I enjoy doing fine art every now and then, even if it’s not easy. The painting is from about 1880, and it’s often called Luncheon of the Boating Party, but it says The Oarsmen’s Breakfast on the box. The breakfast / lunch looks largely liquid, with some fruit thrown in.

The Oarsmen’s Breakfast by Renoir, Clementoni, 1500 pieces. Completed on April 24, 2021.

Star Wars: Dark Side vs Light Side, 2021-01-20

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I have to say I lost faith in the rebellion some years ago, and I expect there are one or two Star Wars movies out there that I haven’t even seen. The puzzle was enjoyable regardless 🙂

Star Wars: Dark Side vs Light Side, FX Schmid, 500 pieces. Completed on January 20, 2021.

No pieces were missing, but one has been torn in two. Looks like it could have been done by a dog.