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England
and
Wales
Accurately Delineated
from
the lastest Surveys
by
Thomas Kitchin
... May 7, 1783 John Wallis at his Map Warehouse
Ludgate Street, London...
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I spent a fair amount of time looking
at the label and there are parts of it that I can not decipher.
Somewhere between 1812 and 1814, John Wallis claimed to be
"the original manufacturer of maps and puzzles (having dedicated full 30
years to that particular line of busines)". That would make this puzzle one
of the earliest that he produced. John Spilsbury had conveniently passed
away some years earlier, otherwise this boast might never had been put forth.
There is no doubt however, that Wallis was one of the first to
manufacture puzzles and one of his early successes was his version of
Darton's "Kings and Queens" in 1788. This 54 piece puzzle, on mahogany with a paper
backing, is about 25" tall and 24" at its widest. The mahogany box is 7.5" x 8" x 3" | |
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A Key
to the
British Constitution
by means of which
Young Persons may easily aquire
a thorough knowledge of its
PECULIAR EXCELLENCIES.
Sold by John Wallis
at his Instructive Toy Warehouse.
13 Warwick Square, London |
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This puzzle was probably made sometime between 1805 and 1811, the years
his address was listed at 13 Warwick. The title on the puzzle is "An Analytical
Table of the Government of Great Britain" and it was an educational puzzle meant
to show the relationships of the various branches. This 39 piece puzzle, on mahogany
with a paper backing, is 11" x 8 5/8".
The mahogany box is 6" x 7.5" x 1.5". The label: |
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WARRANTED PERFECT.
Improved
DISSECTED MAPS,
COMBINING
Instruction with Amusement
WORLD
from WALLIS"s Original Manufactory.
42 Skinner Street,
Snow Hill. London.
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This Edward Wallis (son of John) puzzle is marked "Published Jan. 25th, 1822"
It is in such nice condition that at first, I wondered if perhaps it was a reproduction.
After a lot of careful study of the wood, saw marks, ink and printing method, I
have concluded that I have an exceptionally well preserved puzzle. One other factor
would be that someone would have had to put a lot of time, skill and effort into this
and at the time that I bought it, there was virtually no market for old English
puzzles and there would have been no way to make a profit from all that effort. This
24.5" x 14.625" puzzle is on mahogany with a paper backing and has 71 pieces. The box is
9.5" x 7.25" x 2.75" |
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Nine
Interesting Scenes
in the
DAIRYMAN'S DAUGHTER,
Young Cottager
and
NEGRO SERVANT.
by REVd Legh Richmond
Drawn from Nature and on the Spot
Published by E. Wallis, 42, Skinner Street, London
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I have not found any references to
tell me about this puzzle's subject. Was it a book, a play or something from the
society pages? This puzzle came with a picture insert and only a small fragment remains.
There is enough of the image to allow me to make replacement pieces
for the two bottom images. I'm guessing that this puzzle was made in
the 1830s or 1840s. The address and signature used span 1818 to 1847. The 67
piece puzzle is 16" x 13.5" and is paper backed mahogany. I don't know the wood; the box is 7.5"
x 9.5" x 2.25".
I have found out that this is a reference to a book of
children's Christian stories. The Dairyman's Daughter, The Negro Servant, and
The Young Cottager were each stories in The Annals of the Poor. This book was
a huge seller in the 19th century (over 2 million copies) and the stories
continue to be published and sold today. (Over 10 million copies in 10
languages.) The stories (and scenes?) occurred on the Isle of Wight.
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