The first jigsaw puzzle was made around 1760 by John Spilsbury, a London mapmaker and printshop owner. He mounted a map on a thin piece of mahogany, cut out the countries, and taught children geography. Perhaps the first time the idea of letting children play their way to knowledge.
At first the game was cut out of a wooden picture, first with a knife, later with a handheld saw, and was therefore called a dissection. The name became slightly less ennerving in the 1880s with the invention of the treadle, or jigsaw, which was a much faster means of cutting the pieces from cardboard. After they ceased being individual, handcut masterpieces, puzzles became more affordable, so that even common people could enjoy them.
Jigsaw puzzles continued development as a learning-through-play device for children, hand in hand with amusing and intriguing older people. In 1907 a veritable jigsaw craze swept the United States. Puzzling became a fashionable thing to do at parties as well as a family activity that didn't cost a lot of money. During the Depression, jigsaw puzzles reached their peak of popularity with 10 million sold every week in 1933.
Although today their status is much lower, jigsaws are still fun and are as suitable for a friend or family group as for the meticulous lone geek. The original map puzzles exist in many varieties, but even more common are beautiful pictures that grow beneath your fingers.
Today both kinds exist, from simple 5-piece puzzles to seemingly endless amount of parts. I spent most of last year's Christmas break "helping" my cousin assembling his 3D castle puzzle. Yup, still captivating in the extreme.