Vintage Puzzles

Puzzles have existed throughout history. At certain points they rose to amazing levels. I think we’re in one of those times right now, with so many talented designers and makers.

The 18th century saw the amazing furniture of Abraham and David Roentgen who designed and built simply incredible pieces for the nobility of the time. The first two pictures are of the Roentgen desk, considered the pinnacle of their creations. I could not begin to describe this piece but there is a video that shows it in much more detail. The second two pictures are of the Berlin Secretary created for King William Frederick II. Again, describing this cannot do it justice and this video is much better.

The next two pictures are of a reproduction of a Pennsylvania Spice Box. This was made by by Stephen Kirk of Cryptic Woodworks as part of a class. These only existed in the North Eastern US in the mid 18th century. Many had secret compartments in them along with one or more locks and were often very prized items. You can see a video of this example here.