ATHENS – A collection of 24 Karakuri puzzle boxes is currently on display in the lobby of the Athens State University Library. The collection is on loan from Dr. Cathy Woodruff, Assistant Professor of Early Childhood Education at Athens State. Woodruff and her husband have collected these unique puzzles for many years, and at one time, their collection consisted of over 300 of these small works of art.
The word Karakuri means a mechanical device to tease, trick, or take a person by surprise. Japanese Karakuri works are wooden interlocking puzzles and secret boxes, which generally include a puzzle element. To open a puzzle box, one or more sliding pieces, hidden within the patterns on the box, must be moved.
The Athens State University Library is located on Pryor Street in Athens and is open to the public Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m. – 9:00 p.m., and on Saturday, 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
