coastal.tours
Stopping for tea
Unknown title, c1915. 80 plywood pieces, 20 x 15 cm. Push fit, colorline cut. Made in England by W.G. Evans and Sons.
Fascinating little jigsaw puzzle that came without a box or any documentation. Since there were no takers on eBay I decided to scoop it up for a closer look.
The four figurals (sword, star, flag, and wingy thing) are hallmarks of Evans' cutting style. In most Evans jigsaws, these figurals are surrounded by a circle of narrow pieces ('halos'), a feature that allows for immediate positive identification. These halo pieces are absent here, with the possible exception of the two pieces around the flag. But I think the absence of the halo pieces must be ascribed to the requirements of colorline cutting. There is just no room for halos around the sword and the star without cutting into the colorlines of the window, open door, or fireplace. Colorline cutting itself is not a necessary feature in Evans jigsaws, and usually in small puzzles it is completely absent so that the halos can be developed freely. But colorline cutting does appear not infrequently in Evans jigsaws, and here it seems that it has taken priority over the halo cut.
The Jigasaurus draws attention to similarities between the cutting styles of Evans and Tuck, suggesting a connection between the two. I would like to point out a consistent difference, however, which suggests to me that such a connection is not as straightforward. While both Evans and Tuck excelled in producing exquisitly crafted very small adult jigsaws (like this one), both companies seem to have taken a very different approach to setting up their cuts. In particular, Tuck almost invariably starts from a highly intricate subdivision of the blank, creating a regular number of (cleverly disguised) slabs, each containing a single figural. The pieces surrounding the figural serve as much to cut up the rest of the slab, as to embed the figural. In Evans, this technique is completely absent. There is no subdivision of the blank to create a home for each figural. Rather, the figurals seem to take center stage, and the halos emanating from the figurals fan out freely, unchecked by the requirements of blank subdivision.
This appears to be an early puzzle, presumably shortly after 1912, which is the copyright date of the illustration printed in the bottom left corner. There appears to be a signature in that area as well, but I cannot make sense of it. Any information about the artist would be warmly welcomed.
Edit: quizplayer notes a striking similarity to the subject of this Parker puzzle, called The Flirtation. That jigsaw has the name Wodehouse written on the box, which may point to the artist, or to a scene from a P.G. Wodehouse story. Many thanks!
Stopping for tea
Unknown title, c1915. 80 plywood pieces, 20 x 15 cm. Push fit, colorline cut. Made in England by W.G. Evans and Sons.
Fascinating little jigsaw puzzle that came without a box or any documentation. Since there were no takers on eBay I decided to scoop it up for a closer look.
The four figurals (sword, star, flag, and wingy thing) are hallmarks of Evans' cutting style. In most Evans jigsaws, these figurals are surrounded by a circle of narrow pieces ('halos'), a feature that allows for immediate positive identification. These halo pieces are absent here, with the possible exception of the two pieces around the flag. But I think the absence of the halo pieces must be ascribed to the requirements of colorline cutting. There is just no room for halos around the sword and the star without cutting into the colorlines of the window, open door, or fireplace. Colorline cutting itself is not a necessary feature in Evans jigsaws, and usually in small puzzles it is completely absent so that the halos can be developed freely. But colorline cutting does appear not infrequently in Evans jigsaws, and here it seems that it has taken priority over the halo cut.
The Jigasaurus draws attention to similarities between the cutting styles of Evans and Tuck, suggesting a connection between the two. I would like to point out a consistent difference, however, which suggests to me that such a connection is not as straightforward. While both Evans and Tuck excelled in producing exquisitly crafted very small adult jigsaws (like this one), both companies seem to have taken a very different approach to setting up their cuts. In particular, Tuck almost invariably starts from a highly intricate subdivision of the blank, creating a regular number of (cleverly disguised) slabs, each containing a single figural. The pieces surrounding the figural serve as much to cut up the rest of the slab, as to embed the figural. In Evans, this technique is completely absent. There is no subdivision of the blank to create a home for each figural. Rather, the figurals seem to take center stage, and the halos emanating from the figurals fan out freely, unchecked by the requirements of blank subdivision.
This appears to be an early puzzle, presumably shortly after 1912, which is the copyright date of the illustration printed in the bottom left corner. There appears to be a signature in that area as well, but I cannot make sense of it. Any information about the artist would be warmly welcomed.
Edit: quizplayer notes a striking similarity to the subject of this Parker puzzle, called The Flirtation. That jigsaw has the name Wodehouse written on the box, which may point to the artist, or to a scene from a P.G. Wodehouse story. Many thanks!