Opera Puzzles Displayed

August 21, 1999 to August 28, 1999

Each summer, I go to the Appalachian Mountain Club’s Echo Lake Camp, Mt. Desert Island, Acadia National Park, Me for a week of hiking. I always bring a large batch of puzzles for the guests at the camp to assemble during the week, and give a presentation on the history of jigsaw puzzles showing examples from our collection. This past summer at Camp during the week of August 21-28, I focused my talk on our growing collection of opera scene puzzles. However, the evening leaders for that week, Mark & Doreen Gamell then turned the display into a contest as to who could best identify the operas, composers, scenes and characters depicted in the puzzles. This proved a challenge to the audience, but by combining forces, several teams did quite well with the winners being Herb & Ellen Kingsbury of Kittery Point, ME.

Puzzles shown:

  • Ayer/Picture Puzzle Exchange: Carment II, 421 pcs.
  • Batterson: La Tosca, 396 pcs
  • Jones/Delta/General: Madame Butterfly, 1100 pcs.
  • Parker Brothers/Pastime: La Boheme-Street Scene-Outside the Café, 1000 pcs.
  • Parker Brothers/Pastime: Carmen, 750 pcs. (mirror image of above Carmen II).
  • Parker Brothers/Pastime: Lohengrin-The Swan Boat, 1100 pcs. (see large image)
  • Parker Brothers/Pastime: The Barber of Seville, 1101 pcs.
  • Parker Brothers/Pastime: Faust and Marguerite-Apparation, 500 pcs. (see large image)
  • Parker Brothers/Pastime: La Salome, 350 pcs.
  • Parker Brothers/Pastime: La Boheme-Brilliant Studio Scene, 750 pcs.