Jigsaw Puzzle Accessories - History

History

Jigsaw puzzles were made commercially available in England by John Spilsbury, around 1760 and have been widely accepted home entertainment in the UK ever since. Jigsaws enjoy similar popularity throughout Europe, and in the American Great Depression jigsaw puzzles sold at the rate of 10 million per week. It is perhaps therefore surprising that companies who produce games and puzzles have been slow to exploit the commercial opportunities afforded by so many enthusiasts who require something on which to construct their jigsaws along with methods of storing and displaying them.

The first references to any kind of jigsaw puzzle accessory can be found around 1900 when a "Frame" was first included in Dutch jigsaw puzzle boxes so that a completed puzzle could be permanently saved. The idea was not successful and was soon discontinued. A similar fate befell the mahogany and walnut "Puzzle Trays" that were advertised in Viking's Picture Puzzle Weekly in America during the 1930s

Without the protection afforded by intellectual property rights, most companies are reluctant to make large investments in product development and promotion and one of the main obstacles to the commercialisation of jigsaw puzzle accessories has been the difficulty in obtaining such protection. The most prevalent function of a jigsaw accessory is to provide a surface on which to construct the puzzle and then quickly pack it away in its part-assembled state; products most often take the form of mats that can be rolled up (complete with puzzle pieces) or boards that can be stored in a case. Such functionality is so basic that it has been found to be almost impossible to secure patents and this probably explains why no accessories became readily available until nearly the end of the 20th Century.

In the late 1980s Falcon Games in England decided to tackle the intellectual property issue by route of applying for a trademark and on 4 August 1989 their self-explanatory Jigroll name was registered (UK Patent Office Reference 1318441). Although many companies have since copied the functionality of the Jigroll, none have been able to give their products the same name and in jigsaw puzzle parlance "Jigroll" has almost become a generic term for all jigsaw mats and rolls.

Falcon enjoyed similar success with the Porta Puzzle mark registered on 9 March 1993 (UK Patent Office Reference 1528876) for "Folders and cases made of plastics and/or card for holding and carrying jigsaw puzzles". Since the registration of this mark there have been a number of innovations and improvements to the original design, both by the current owners of the mark and other companies, but collectively carrying cases for jigsaw puzzles are still most often referred to as "Porta Puzzles".

Amended info. Parker Hilton Ltd, a Manchester based games company, designed, patented and marketed Portapuzzle from 1989 until the company,its products and patents were bought by Falcon Games and its Dutch owners Jumbo BV in 2001.

Jigsaw puzzle frames in which a completed puzzle can be displayed have never been very popular in either Europe or the U.S.A. but this is not the case in Japan where the customary use of jigsaws is for wall decoration. From the time that jigsaws first became available in Japan, in the 1970s, jigsaw frames have been available to fit the jigsaw sizes of all the leading manufacturers.