Caerphilly Castle jigsaw puzzle - 1924
The British Empire Exhibition was held at Wembley in 1924 and 1925 and the GWR displayed their new locomotive 'Caerphilly Castle' on their stand in the Palace of Engineering from May to October 1924.
In 1924, the May edition of the Great Western Railway Magazine featured a large photograph and a short article announcing the publication of the first jigsaw puzzle to be produced and sold by the Great Western Railway.
The "Caerphilly Castle" as a Jig-Saw, size 29 in. by 9 in., and printed in three colours.
A Jig-Saw of the "Caerphilly Castle."
AN item of news that will be warmly welcomed by youthful admirers of locomotives is that the Great Western Railwy engine No. 4073, the "Caerphilly Castle" - the most powerful passenger express locomotive in the British Isles - forms the subject of a delightful jig-saw puzzle now obtainable.
The puzzle measures approximately 29 in. by 9 in., and comprises 150 pieces. The picture is printed in three colours. the whole production is finely executed, and is certain to meet with a great deal of favour.
The jig-saw may be purchased , price 5s., at the railway bookstalls, or will be supplied, post free, on receipt of this ammount on application to the Editor of the GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY MAGAZINE, General Manager's office, Paddington Station, London, W.2.
It would seem that the price of five shillings was deterring many would be purchasers, and so the decision was quickly taken to reduce it to 2/6 as announced in the June, 1924 edition of the magazine. This just about covered the cost of production, but this and all subsequent 150 piece puzzles were sold at 2/6 right up until production ceased in 1939. Larger puzzles were similarly priced at cost, emphasis being placed on publicity rather than profit.
The "Caerphilly Castle" Jig-Saw.
ALTHOUGH produced only a month ago, already the jig-saw puzzle of the locomotive, the Caerphilly Castle, has captivated a very wide interest. The famous engine No. 4073, which was built by the Great Western Railway Company last year at their Swindon works, at once became popular as the most powerful passenger express locomotive in the Britich Isles.
The puzzle measures approximately 29 in. by 9 in., and comprises 150 pieces. The picture is produced in three colours.
The price of the jig-saw, which was 5s., has been reduced to 2s. 6d. (postage 5d. extra). Supplies will shortly be available at the railway bookstalls. The puzzle will be sent, on receipt of its price and postage, on application to the Editor of the GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY MAGAZINE, General Manager's office, Paddington Station, London, W.2.
Sales of the jigsaw were soon in full swing, and every opportunity was taken to promote it as can be seen in the left hand image which was taken from the July 1924 edition of the magazine. There seems very little space left through which to serve the customers! Showing Wyman's bookstall on Reading station with displays of GWR literature and the Caerphilly Castle jigsaw prominently displayed in the centre. The advertisement on the right was taken from the same edition of the magazine.
Different versions
The large image in the magazine article above was purely illustrative as the jigsaw itself featured the locomotive at a slight angle which, whilst being based on a photograph, was an artist's impression. The puzzle was first published in a blue box with a large monochorome label attached to the front. This label bore neither GWR branding nor any indication that it had been manufactured for them by the Chad Valley company. The large guide picture on these labels showed the locomotive at an angle similar to the puzzle itself. Strangely in later editions, which were by then sold in what was to become the standard more rectangular brown box, the guide picture had changed to being a side view.
The cut of the puzzles also changed over time with some versions being a 'push fit' and others with a varying degree of interlocking. Early versions of the puzzle were cut around the outline of the locomotive following details such as the couplings and buffers. This soon stopped, probably as a cost saving measure, and a much simpler outline was adopted.
Whilst first promoted as being 29 inches by 9 inches in size, in reality the blue box versions stated Size of Picture 24" x 8½" and the later brown box versions had shrunk to 24" x 8". All editions of the puzzle contained approximately 150 pieces. Being hand cut this did vary slighty, as would the actual cut of the puzzle itself.
