THE PUZZLE MUSEUM LIBRARY
Contains over 4000 books plus a huge variety of prints, and ephemera.
Here are just a few books that illustrate the breadth of the collection.
BOOKS
BOOKS - ANCIENT
The earliest book (1653) in the English language, on recreational mathematics, which includes puzzles.
Here is a leather puzzle purse
BOOKS - CURIOUS
Anagrams in honour of King Charles First.
The curious capitalization of the bottom line has a purpose - It is a Chronogram Puzzle.
The capitals are Roman Numerals. Add them up to arrive at the date of publication 1623.
BOOKS - ROMANTIC
A Riddle book from the personal Library
of Marie Antoinette.
BOOKS - REMARKABLE
Thomas Hydes books on oriental Games, Historia Nerdiludii and Historiae Shahilidii, which contains text in Latin, Arabic and Chinese was a great achievement for 1694 and remains a valuable source of information on many aspects of games including Islamic social attitudes to gambling.
Lower left is a detail from the Chinese "Game of Mandarin Promotions", one of the earliest precursors of "Snakes & Ladders"
BOOKS HISTORICAL
In which Eduard Lucas first explained the Tower of Hanoi.
Remarkably this volume also belonged to the great English Puzzler - Henry E. Dudeney
BOOKS - SILLY
Not only did this 1980s Spitting Image book contain a rude rebus puzzle, but it also contained a Treasure Hunt puzzle.
It is reported that everyone thought it was just a Joke, so nobody set off to look for the solid gold walnut which represented the President's brain.
BOOKS in BEAUTIFUL BINDINGS
Pictorial
Pictorial
Cardboard
Paper
Silk
Ivory
Mother of Pearl
