The World's Largest Jigsaw Puzzle

By Author: Razvan Jr
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The current world record for the biggest jigsaw puzzle belongs to a puzzle named Life (Vida) that has 24,000 pieces. Once it hit the shelves, it dethroned the old record which consisted of only 18,000 pieces. Putting together any type of jigsaw puzzle is both fun and educational, a hobby that is enjoyed by youngsters and old people as well. The race for the biggest jigsaw puzzle in the world is completely understandable as the more pieces it has, the more challenging and exciting it is to complete. For these reasons, worldwide jigsaw manufacturers are introducing to the market new and larger puzzles that contain a bundle of variety and beautiful puzzle artwork.

Educa is the manufacturer of this masterpiece, the most demanding puzzle ever created. Prior to this model, the company made an 18,000-pieces model that was also very famous among enthusiasts. The former world record belongs to a company named Ravensburger with its Skylines of the World puzzle which was made out of 18,000 pieces.

Getting back to the current world record, it consists of exactly 24,000 pieces and its full name is Life - The Great Challenge. ...
... It's the biggest jigsaw puzzle not only because of its high quantity of pieces, but at the same time it has the largest height and width, its full measure are (after it is completed) 14.04 ft by 5.15 ft (428 x 157 cm), perfect for decorating a wall in your room.

Due to its tremendous overall size, the Life puzzle had to be separated into four packets, each consisting 6,000 pieces, thus breaking the exquisite artwork up into four vertical sections which are joined to create the world record for the biggest jigsaw puzzle. This artwork for the Life puzzle was created by a well-known veteran puzzle artist by the name of Royce B. McClure, who in its lifetime of work published more than one hundred jigsaw puzzles. The entire art presented in the Life: The Great Challenge puzzle was inspired by various paintings that he made over the years, which logically had to be scanned and then recomposed in order to best fit this gigantic sized puzzle, making each of the sections different enough from each other so that the person(s) who try to complete it won't feel like they are making the same puzzle over and over again. The final result is something very similar to the title of the puzzle: life, as it is full of colors, beauty, drama, activity, variety and all of the characteristics that define life.

When it was first introduced, it had a price tag of $299.99, but in 2010 the price went up to $349.99 due to its immense global success. The first person that managed to complete the puzzle was Annick Oriol from Belgium. She did it in exactly 28 days and 20 hours. If you were curious, the weight of this monster is 26 pounds (12 kg). Each section of the puzzle is 42 inches wide and 62 inches tall (107 cm wide and 157 cm tall).

It goes without saying that sooner or later the record for the largest jigsaw puzzle in the world will be broken by a model that will surpass the 24,000 pieces mark. Let's all hope that it will be just as beautiful as this one, but more complex and harder to complete at the same time.

About Author: Learn more about jigsaw puzzles Ireland by having a look at our website located at www.vividstories.ie .