Buying a 60,000-piece jigsaw puzzle seemed like a fun idea to Michael and Craig at the time.
More than two years later, they have finally seen all 60,000 pieces put together.
A group connected to the Free Reformed Church of Southern River (FRCSR) Church community in Southern River has completed and assembled a 60,000-piece jigsaw puzzle measuring almost nine metres long and 2.4 metres high.
The ‘What a Wonderful World’ puzzle by Dowdle features a world map made up of 187 paintings and comes as 60 individual 1,000-piece puzzles.
Puzzle custodian Michael said he and Craig bought it more than two years ago without knowing where the project would eventually lead.
“We just thought it would be a fun idea,” he said.
“We never thought that we would ever actually assemble the whole thing in one piece.”
That changed after Gerrit Griffioen became involved.
Michael and Craig gave Gerrit one of the 1,000-piece sections to complete. He returned it finished and was given several more.
Gerrit then began passing sections to other people and organising how the project could eventually come together.
About 14 people completed the individual puzzles in their homes, with the project growing to include assemblers and others who helped with the display and promotion.
Work began around April 2024, with the final section completed around June this year.
Gerrit said the prospect of eventually seeing all 60 sections together helped keep the group going.
There were also some setbacks along the way. One of the biggest happened while Michael was transporting seven completed sections to Gerrit’s house.
“Seven thousand pieces just scattered throughout the boot of my car,” Michael said.
“And then we had to work on that, sorting it all back out again.”
Another missing piece from one of the puzzles was eventually found elsewhere in a house.
Completing the individual sections was only part of the job.
The group then had to work out how to join and display a puzzle stretching almost nine metres without spending too much money.
Contact film, double-sided tape, masking tape, polycarbonate sheeting, timber slats and support structures were used to create a stand-alone display.
Eleven people were involved in assembling the finished sections at the church hall.
Gerrit said seeing it standing in the hall was a memorable moment after more than two years of work.
“The assembling group was amazed when they had the puzzle stand up in the hall,” he said.
“It had its challenges, but it came all together pretty well.”
Michael said one of his favourite parts of the project was working with Gerrit on the planning needed to bring everything together.
He believes the prospect of eventually seeing the completed puzzle also encouraged people to keep working on their sections.
“Probably the idea that one day it would be all together in one piece on display, and that would be pretty cool to see,” he said.
The finished puzzle is now open for public viewing at the FRCSR Church Hall, 504 Southern River Road, on Saturdays from 10am to noon.
Instead of charging a set admission fee, the group is asking visitors for a gold coin donation or more, with proceeds going to Pindari Men’s Restoration House.
Michael said residents from Pindari also helped with the project.
“We got a lot of help from residents of Pindari, so it’d be really good for them to get a good donation out of it,” he said.
Gerrit said visitors have responded strongly to seeing the finished puzzle in person, with many describing it as “fantastic” or “amazing”.
After more than two years spent getting 60,000 pieces into place, Michael has not completely ruled out doing another giant puzzle. However, he is in no rush.
“I think it would be a really good idea one day, but not anytime soon,” he said.
