The giant puzzle involved nearly 3,700 participants, including children, young people of all ages, families, school groups, and international visitors, highlighted theme park director Nuno Gonçalves.
The final pieces of the seven-meter-long and four-meter-wide puzzle, assembled in the Castelo de Guimarães area of the Portugal dos Pequenitos park, were put in place by over twenty students from Colégio Bissaya Barreto, aged between seven and eight years old.
“The idea was to create an activity that would endure over time and engage families and children within a school context, but also attract international visitors. It aimed to involve all our visitors,” said Nuno Gonçalves.
The puzzle assembly began on June 1, marking International Children’s Day, and aimed to be “something bigger than ourselves.”
“It also embodies a larger concept we always uphold in the park, which is the way of learning through play. This is a fundamental value for us and for the Fundação Bissaya Barreto,” explained Gonçalves.
Speaking to Lusa, the theme park director emphasized the educational aspect of this jigsaw, which is now “the largest in the world to be commercially available.”
“Until now, the largest puzzle being sold had fifty-some thousand or sixty thousand pieces. This one has 103,000 pieces; it’s an exclusive edition available in four sets,” he stated.
The puzzle can be purchased at the Portugal dos Pequenitos store and the supplier store, Mundo do Puzzle, for 8,900 euros.
Founded by Fernando Bissaya Barreto during Salazar’s Estado Novo dictatorship in the context of the Portuguese World Exhibition, Portugal dos Pequenitos is celebrating 85 years of operation.
