This largest puzzle in the world is not for sale. It was a record attempt by supermarket chain Albert Heijn. First all the details:
| Number of Pieces | Dimensions Puzzle | Where was this? | When was this? | Made by whom? | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.209.466 | 25 meters x 33 meters | Netherlands - Amsterdam - Olympic Stadium | 7 October 2009 | Supermarket chain Albert Heijn |
Largest puzzle in the world according to Guinness Book of World Records
The largest puzzle in the world is certainly the Albert Heijn puzzle with 1.209.466 pieces according to the Guinness Book of World Records. They write that in their own Online Magazine.
Beforehand – Largest puzzle in the world: is it for sale or not?
There is a distinction between the largest puzzle in the world. Namely:
– There's the biggest puzzle in the world ever made – and it's not for sale. So not commercial.
– There is the biggest puzzle in the world – and it is for sale. So commercial. You can 'just' put these at home
That is the puzzle of 54.000 Pieces: Journey through Art by Grafika – costs about 500 euros
How was this largest puzzle in the world made?
This is one of the many promotions devised by Albert Heijn. In addition to collecting and pasting football pictures or collecting vegetable gardens, the action was now devised to make the largest puzzle in the world together. How did this action go and how was this largest puzzle ever made? With this promotion, Albert Heijn customers could not only puzzle at home, they could also help make the largest puzzle in the world in AH stores. This was the exact text of the action at the time:
“Everyone who buys groceries for €21 at Ah from Monday September 11 to Sunday October 2009, 10,00 will receive one of the 24 free tickets with 6 puzzle pieces to take home. In this way, customers save for the complete Eredivisie puzzle, which consists of 144 pieces. Once all the pieces of the puzzle have been put together, the images will show players from all 18 clubs in the current Premier League - one player per club - dressed in 1,49s football uniforms. The collectors can store the puzzle pieces in a special puzzle case which costs €6 including 30 free puzzle pieces. During the Action, customers can not only enjoy puzzles at home, they can also help in the shop to solve the largest puzzle in the world. On Wednesday September 600, 7 AH stores will organize a puzzle afternoon. The thousands of pieces that are put together there are part of the life-size puzzle that will be put together on Wednesday 3 October in the Olympic Stadium in Amsterdam. You can sign up for the puzzle afternoon in the store itself. The puzzle action at AH lasts XNUMX weeks.”
Puzzle afternoon on September 30, 2009 in AH stores
So partly people do their own puzzles at home, but a puzzle afternoon will be organized on Wednesday 30 September in about 600 AH stores (between 13.30 and 17.00). The puzzles that are made on this afternoon will be used to put together the largest puzzle ever in the Olympic stadium in Amsterdam on Wednesday, October 7, 2009. All puzzles that are then made in the AH stores on September 30, are transported to the Olympic stadium and put together there to create the largest puzzle ever. If you would like to see some more pictures about that 'puzzle afternoon' at AH, take a look here. An example of such a puzzle afternoon by the children at an AH branch:
Largest puzzle ever on October 7, 2009 in the Olympic Stadium in Amsterdam
The total number of puzzles made in the AH stores totals 4800, and each puzzle consists of 252 pieces. So a total of 4800 puzzles * 252 pieces = 1.209.600 pieces. Given the number of pieces reported for the record attempt, namely 1.209.466, perhaps 1 puzzle has not been included. I can't reconcile those two numbers – but what's under the relevant Youtube video 'The notary noted that a few pieces were missing'; apparently everything counted and the numbers are correct. The last pieces were laid on October 7, 2009 by students of the Olympiaschool near the stadium, together with Ajax player Urby Emanuelson. The notary officially beat Ravensburger's 2008 record for 'the largest puzzle in the world or the largest puzzle ever'.
There are 2 videos on Youtube of this great event:
and if the record is set and a party is being thrown, in the presence of the press and rather bad weather 🙁 :