Most people think of jigsaw puzzles as a hobby to kill time on rainy afternoons. But the story of jigsaw puzzles is surprisingly rich. They began in the 1760s when a London cartographer, John Spilsbury, mounted maps on wood and cut them into irregular pieces for children to learn geography. In British and Indian schools alike, similar “map puzzles” were once common in classrooms.

Over the next two centuries, the puzzles moved from educational tools to entertainment. By the early 1900s, die-cut cardboard made puzzles affordable for the masses. In India, we started seeing imported puzzles of the Taj Mahal, Victoria Memorial, or Himalayan landscapes in the 1980s and 90s.

Today’s puzzles are far from simple maps. They feature fine art prints, custom photography, even wood-cut laser designs. Collectors hunt for limited editions the way others collect stamps or vinyl records. Brands collaborate with artists, photographers and even museums to create puzzles that are as much about owning art as solving it.

It’s fascinating how something born as a geography lesson is now a global passion that connects young and old alike — and one of the rare hobbies where you can “hold history” piece by piece.