On this page: Box contents - Yanoman website - Identifying Yanoman puzzles - Special orders
Yanoman was the first company to start making puzzles in Japan - in 1973. They have a wide range, and have explored many different forms of puzzle, such as the new spherical ones. For a few more historical details, see the manufacturers page.
Box contents
In days gone by you opened a jigsaw puzzle box, and inside were just the pieces! But Japanese puzzles come with various extra bits and pieces. The assumption is that you will only do the puzzle once, then glue it together for wall mounting, to impress your friends.
1 Most important - the pieces
2 Mini-poster (about A4/US letter size)
3 Postcard: instructions, and how to get a replacement for a missing piece. (Details on request)
4 "Service" coupon: collect enough of them, and you get a free puzzle. (More details on request)
5 "Jigsaw puzzle paste" (principal ingredient polyvinyl alcohol - PVA). Really speaking this is not paste, but a clear glue.
6 Mystery object
Doing the puzzle
Ignore the strict instructions to do the edge pieces first: put the bits together in any order you like. If you want to display the puzzle, you can use the glue to stick it together. Spread a sheet of clean but unwanted paper under the completed puzzle, with the puzzle the right way up. (Some people say it's best to do this on a sheet of glass, which the puzzle won't stick to.) Then pour the glue over the front of the puzzle: spread it out carefully with the mystery object, so all the joints get neatly filled with glue. It should dry with a nice glossy finish. It is a good idea to practice on a small puzzle before you try this on a really large one.
Disclaimer: I have very limited experience of gluing puzzles - I usually break them up to do again some day. But I have had some success with trompe l'oeil murals!
Please note: Actual box contents may vary - if you find any discrepancies, please let us know. In particular, only some Yanoman puzzles include the "mini-poster": in others the picture is printed directly on the bottom of the box.
Website
Yanoman website: http://www.yanoman.com
The Yanoman site has separate catalogs (also accessible with the tabs at the top of the Yanoman page) for different types of puzzle.
Regular puzzles
Petit: Postcard size puzzles
"Simple style": Budget packaged puzzles
Heart-shaped puzzles: Two-sided - Sweets - Flowers
Scenic puzzles: Four seasons - Train journey - Travel views - Worldwide - Japan
Art puzzles: Kagaya Yutaka - Shinya Uchida - Kajita Tatsuji - Ozuma Kaname - K-saku (Kanji art from Ikkudou) - Matsumoto - Senko - Zigen Tanabe - Tsuyoshi Nagano - Alphonse Mucha (art nouveau) - Classics of western art - Japanese art - Mandalas
Character puzzles: Wachifield - Hello Kitty - NHK characters - Pocket Monsters - Evangelion - Penelope - Gaspard et Lisa - Snoopy - Gundam - Worldwide animation - Anime and video games - Miscellaneous
Pets: Lovely animals
Flowers: Fujico - Blooming collection
Miscellaneous: Celebrities - Maps
Accessories: Puzzle glue and storage
Spherical puzzles
Astronomy: Heavenly bodies - The earth
Characters: Disney Studios - Hello Kitty - Pocket monsters - Wachifield - Doraemon - Snoopy - Miscellaneous
Sport: Soccer
Fortune: Lucky Daruma
Miscellaneous: Art - Money-box puzzles (cylindrical puzzles) - Heart puzles
Accessories: Spherical puzzle accessories
Disney catalog
Postcard size puzzles: Stitch - Mickey and friends - Pooh - Pixar - Others
Frames: Disney frames (for "Petit" puzzles)
Wooden puzzles: Stitch
3D puzzles: Big face - Heart-shaped puzzles - Money-box puzzles - Spherical puzzles
Heart-shaped puzzles: Mickey and friends - Pooh
(Updated July 2010)
Identifying Yanoman puzzles
Yanoman codes generally have two digits for the number of pieces, plus a puzzle code: 05- for 500 pieces, 10- for 1000 pieces, etc. Imaginatorium Shop codes simply omit the hyphen.
