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A Century of Progress %u2022 Vintage PostcardsNovelty Postcards, Jigsaw PuzzlesWooden jigsaw puzzles were first developed in Great Britain in the 1760s. They were primarily in the shape of maps, and were used to teach geography to the children of the wealthy. During the early twentieth century, wooden puzzles were being used in the United States as a form of entertainment for wealthy adults.It wasn%u2019t until the Great Depression that mass-produced, die-cut, cardboard jigsaw puzzles were available at affordable prices. In 1933, the Consolidated Paper Company in Somerville, Massachusetts began selling their Perfect Picture Puzzles at a cost of only ten to twenty-five cents. This brought jigsawpuzzle prices within reach of the middle and lower classes. It is unknown who produced the cardboard jigsaw puzzles in this collection, but the images are the same as those on postcards produced by American Colortype Company. And their partially interlocking pieces are consistent with the Consolidated Paper Company%u2019s puzzles, and other manufacturers of the time. The wooden jigsaw puzzle in this collection (located after the cardboard puzzles) has pieces that interlock fully. It not known who manufactured it, but the image is the same as a postcard in Curt Teich%u2019s 1931 series. It was marketed through Marshall Field & Company, an upscale Chicago department store, and was likely sold at a higher price than the cardboard puzzles. While this particular puzzle was mass-produced, it was during this time that the tradition of hand-cut wooden jigsaw puzzles was begun. Today, most wooden jigsaw puzzles are cut by hand, and they occupy a high-end, niche market due to the extra labor required to produce them.Cardboard Jigsaw Puzzle featuring Lama Temple