Jan van Haasteren puzzles in a flat box
Some Jan van Haasteren puzzles come in a flat box. What exactly does that mean, that flat box?
The flat boxes of the Jan van Haasteren puzzles are thinner, the height is about 3 centimeters. The height of a normal box is 6 centimeters. They fit through the letterbox, which is why they were so narrow or thin. In practice, they do not always fit through a normal letterbox.
In a video – the flat box compared to a normal box
In a video I show you how the two boxes differ from each other:
and also the flat boxes from the side compared to a 'normal' box:
Which puzzles come in flat boxes?
View the overview of all Jan van Haasteren puzzles in flat boxes. To date (January 2023), there are seven Jan van Haasteren puzzles in flat boxes. UPDATE as of October 2025: An eighth flat box has been added, namely the 'Jan van Haasteren Children's Stamps' editionEight Jan van Haasteren puzzles were released in flat boxes by three parties:
– The Bankgiro Lottery – 2 puzzles (More information about Bankgiro Lottery)
– The Friends lottery – 4 puzzles (More info about VriendenLoterij)
– Post NL – 1 puzzle
– Children's stamps
Update dated February 1, 2024:
For the die-hard collectors, another flat box has been discovered. The only difference is a change on the box, nothing else. This concerns the puzzle 'On Land, At Sea and in the Air' with number 81421. There are 3 variants of this 'On Land, at Sea and in the Air'! This third variant is the following. The two differences are that there is no signature at the bottom right of the box with 'JOH' and that the names are not underlined:
and here you see the three variants together - of which the bottom variant is the 'new':
The eight flat boxes – overview
The eight flat boxes in one overview in the photo:
How big are the flat boxes?
The flat boxes have the following dimensions:
– 3 centimeters high (normal box is about 6,5 centimeters high)
– 36 centimeters wide (normal box is about 37 centimeters wide)
– 25 centimeters in length (normal box is approximately 27,5 centimeters in length)
Again in an image
The other dimensions of these boxes are also slightly different. The dimensions of a flat box:
and the dimensions of an ordinary box of 1000 pieces (all dimensions of the Jan van Haasteren boxes):
Are these rare puzzles?
I've made a separate list of all Jan van Haasteren's rare puzzles'rare puzzles'. You often pay more for the rare puzzles if you want to buy them second-hand. I have put this whole set with all 7 flat boxes in the list of rare puzzles. Because I think it's a collector's item. You can still see them on Marktplaats, but I think a lot of people don't know that the flat boxes are separate boxes.
Video overview of all puzzles in a flat box
Jan van Haasteren German Beer Festival. Friends lottery edition. Number 81879 Draughtsman Jan van Haasteren
Jan van Haasteren 'The March'. Friends lottery edition. Number 81768 Draughtsman Jan van Haasteren.
Jan van Haasteren POSTNL Employees puzzle 500 pieces Rare Edition in 2018.
On Land, at Sea and in the Air. Friends lottery edition. No 81421. Flat box. @Puzzle1000Pieces
Jan van Haasteren The Middle Ages Publication Friends lottery. Number 81880. @Puzzle1000Pieces
Jan van Haasteren puzzles in a flat box. All 7 puzzles. Rare. @Puzzle1000Pieces
Jan van Haasteren 'Ter Land, Ter Zee en in de Lucht' Publication Bankgiro Lottery Flat box. No. 8142
Jan van Haasteren 'The Opera'. Publication Bankgiro Lottery. Number 81769. Year 2020.
Jan van Haasteren "Children's Stamps" October 2025 500-piece flat box. @Puzzle1000Pieces
POST NL puzzle of 500 pieces in a flat box
| Image |  |
| Name Puzzle | Post NL |
| Price | € 25 - € 30 |
| Number of Pieces | 500 Pieces |
| Number | No number |
| Year of Issue | 2018 |
| Issue by | Post NL |
| draftsman | Robert Derks |
| Description | This is a puzzle that is rare, although in 2018 no fewer than 26.000 Post NL employees were given one. Still a collector's item. Do you often have to pay for auctions on, for example, Marktplaats.nl. This puzzle was therefore not sold in stores. Remarkable - I think this is one of the few puzzles NOT given a number. Post NL is a Dutch company and they deliver parcels and mail. If you sell a second-hand puzzle, you can do so via Post NL, but also via other postal companies, such as DHL. In 2015, about 50.000 people worked at Post NL, but many also work part-time because at the time there were mainly many mail deliverers. Post NL originates from TNT, because in 2011 TNT was split into TNT Express and Post NL. We also know Post NL from the famous orange mailboxes. More about the puzzle itself. The dimensions of the Post NL puzzle are 48,5 x 34,5 centimeters. On the back of this flat box is a whole explanation about why and to whom this puzzle was issued. By the way, this is 1 of 7 flat boxes by Jan van Haasteren. The other six were all issued by the Vriendenloterij or the Bankgiro lottery. The slogan on the back of the puzzle box is 'We are PostNL and we have something for you'. It also says 'This puzzle brings PostNL into view. You can see how all business units are connected and together contribute to one PostNL. We have a great diversity of knowledge and skills in house and we need each other to use this for a good result. A result that we can all be very proud of!'. |
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Bankgiro lottery puzzles in a flat box (2 puzzles)
1. The Opera
| Image |  |
| Name Puzzle | The Opera (St. George and the Dragon) |
| Price | € 15 - € 20 |
| Number of Pieces | 1000 Pieces |
| Number | 81769 |
| Year of Issue | 2020 |
| Issue by | JUMBO - Bankgiro lottery |
| draftsman | Jan van Haasteren |
| Description | You don't see these very often. More of a collector's item. This puzzle has also appeared in a normal Jumbo box in 1000 pieces. However, this is a flat box and you will receive this as a prize if you participated in the Bankgiro lottery. The advantage of this flat box is that they sometimes fit through the letterbox and therefore had to be sent as a package. Practice shows that this was not always possible for everyone. I have created two extensive pages for this: Bankgiro Lottery puzzles en Friends lottery puzzles. All puzzles that appeared in flat boxes are:
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| Review |
2. On Land, At Sea and In The Air
Note: only difference of this puzzle from the same puzzle of the Friends lottery is the text on the box. This box of the Bankgiro lottery contains the name of the puzzle in one language.
| Image |  |
| Name Puzzle | On Land, At Sea and in the Air |
| Price | € 15 - € 20 |
| Number of Pieces | 1000 Pieces |
| Number | 81421 |
| Year of Issue | 2015 |
| Issue by | JUMBO - Bankgiro lottery |
| draftsman | Jan van Haasteren |
| Description | You don't see these very often. More of a collector's item. This puzzle has also appeared in a normal Jumbo box in 1000 pieces. However, this is a flat box and you will receive this as a prize if you participated in the Bankgiro lottery. The advantage of this flat box is that they sometimes fit through the letterbox and therefore had to be sent as a package. Practice shows that this was not always possible for everyone. I have created two extensive pages for this: Bankgiro Lottery puzzles en Friends lottery puzzles. NB: this puzzle is exactly the same as the edition by the VriendenLoterij, only the title on the box is different. All puzzles that appeared in flat boxes are:
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Friends lottery puzzles in a flat box (4 puzzles)
1. The March (The March)
| Figure 1 |  |
| Figure 2 |  |
| Name Puzzle | The March (The March) |
| Price | € 15 - € 20 |
| Number of Pieces | 1000 Pieces |
| Number | 81768 |
| Year of Issue | 2020 |
| Issue by | JUMBO - Friends lottery |
| draftsman | Jan van Haasteren |
| Description | You don't see these very often. More of a collector's item. This puzzle has also appeared in a normal Jumbo box in 1000 pieces. However, this is a flat box and you will receive it as a prize if you participated in the Friends lottery. The advantage of this flat box is that they sometimes fit through the letterbox and therefore had to be sent as a package. Practice shows that this was not always possible for everyone. I have created two extensive pages for this: Bankgiro Lottery puzzles en Friends lottery puzzles. All puzzles that appeared in flat boxes are:
UPDATE - dated February 4, 2024: a second flat box has been found for the Mars puzzle, and it does have the same number (81768), but this box differs from the 'normal' box in 3 ways (see image - 2 above ):
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2. The Middle Ages (Castle Conflict)
| Image |  |
| Name Puzzle | The Middle Ages (Castle Conflict) |
| Price | € 15 - € 20 |
| Number of Pieces | 1000 Pieces |
| Number | 81880 |
| Year of Issue | 2021 |
| Issue by | JUMBO - Friends lottery |
| draftsman | Jan van Haasteren |
| Description | You don't see these very often. More of a collector's item. This puzzle has also appeared in a normal Jumbo box in 1000 pieces. However, this is a flat box and you will receive it as a prize if you participated in the Friends lottery. The advantage of this flat box is that they sometimes fit through the letterbox and therefore had to be sent as a package. Practice shows that this was not always possible for everyone. I have created two extensive pages for this: Bankgiro Lottery puzzles en Friends lottery puzzles. All puzzles that appeared in flat boxes are:
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| Review | |
| Review |
3. By Land, By Sea and In The Air (4 languages on the box) – (By Air, By Land and See)
Note: only difference of this puzzle compared to the same puzzle of the Bankgiro lottery is the text on the box. This box of the Friends lottery shows the name of the puzzle in four languages.
| Image |  |
| Name Puzzle | On Land, At Sea and in the Air |
| Price | € 15 - € 20 |
| Number of Pieces | 1000 Pieces |
| Number | 81421 |
| Year of Issue | 2019 |
| Issue by | JUMBO - Friends lottery |
| draftsman | Jan van Haasteren |
| Description | You don't see these very often. More of a collector's item. This puzzle has also appeared in a normal Jumbo box in 1000 pieces. However, this is a flat box and you will receive it as a prize if you participated in the Friends lottery. The advantage of this flat box is that they sometimes fit through the letterbox and therefore had to be sent as a package. Practice shows that this was not always possible for everyone. I have created two extensive pages for this: Bankgiro Lottery puzzles en Friends lottery puzzles. NB: this puzzle is exactly the same as the edition by the Bankgiro Lottery, only the title on the box is different. All puzzles that appeared in flat boxes are:
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| Review |
4. German Beer Party (German Beerparty)
| Image |  |
| Name Puzzle | German Beer Festival |
| Price | € 15 - € 20 |
| Number of Pieces | 1000 Pieces |
| Number | 81879 |
| Year of Issue | 2021 |
| Issue by | JUMBO - Friends lottery |
| draftsman | Jan van Haasteren |
| Description | You don't see these very often. More of a collector's item. This puzzle has also appeared in a normal Jumbo box in 1000 pieces. However, this is a flat box and you will receive it as a prize if you participated in the Friends lottery. The advantage of this flat box is that they sometimes fit through the letterbox and therefore had to be sent as a package. Practice shows that this was not always possible for everyone. I have created two extensive pages for this: Bankgiro Lottery puzzles en Friends lottery puzzles. All puzzles that appeared in flat boxes are:
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| Review | |
| Review |