The Anthem Philatelist

The enigma is one of my favorite mechanical puzzles. This puzzle was invented by Eldon Vaughn and patented in America in 1975. and manufactured and distributed worldwide by Hanayama , a toy company based in Japan. The object to dis-join the three somewhat swirled pieces of this puzzle and then to put them back together again.    Basically, the technique to solve this puzzle involves several sequences of sliding through, rotating, overhanging and a tricky move at the end to dis-join the two remaining pieces. Separating the last two pieces is already challenging in itself. Putting it back is more difficult than the first task of disassembling it. I really had a fun time with this puzzle. Once or twice a week, I toy with the moves so I will never forget the sequences (more than 8). I also love the feel of this puzzle, so stern yet docile, so lustrous and fusible. Another cast puzzle which I like is the Chain puzzle which was invented by Oskar van D eventer .    ...

I got this puzzle from eBay from a very good seller who was kind enough to give me some freebies. I don't know if he was really kindhearted or this was done to compensate for some little rusty elements on the metals, well anyway, I do appreciate his gesture. I definitely received more puzzles than I deserved- a whole box with no less than ten puzzles! I'll feature the other puzzles included in the box in my next blog.    The Bungler's Block , aka the Chinese Pendulum Puzzle , looks deceptively simple, but it is really a tricky puzzle involving several coordinated movements that's guaranteed to twist your brain. The long delay in my solving the puzzle ( 2 days) was attributed to a maneuver which I totally missed out.   The opening and closing loop has two movements--this is the key to solving it. The other moves include coursing the rings through the movable loop and passing the ring over the big hump- a maneuver thats only possible if you are aware of the movable...