Our latest “Document of the Week”, chosen by our Editorial Assistant, Chloe Haney, is a page of brainteasers published in The Illustrated London News (ILN) on Christmas Day, 1847.
These “Christmas Crackers”, as the ILN called them, included several eye-catching illustrated puzzles for its readers to decode. Combining word play with its signature visual style, these puzzles showcased the skills of the ILN’s talented artists and writers, offering readers an entertaining challenge for the festive season. Many of the illustrations that make up these puzzles are very small and highly detailed, demonstrating the paper’s expertise in printing and illustration. Number 29, for example, features two very small illustrations of a baker and a pharmacist, both with enough detail to allow the reader to deduce their professions. The answer to the question that these illustrations depict— “why is a baker like a pharmacist”—is a clever piece of word play for its readers to decode—“because he sells pies and things”, i.e. “poison things”.
The page also featured jokes and tricks to play on your family and friends, such as “Easily Tired”, where the reader is told to show a small stick to a friend with the assertion that they will be “completely tired” before they have carried it out of the room. They are then told to trick the friend by chopping a tiny piece off the stick, giving this tiny piece to the friend to take out of the room, and repeating the process until they confess to be tired! A light-hearted prank, this joke provided the ILN’s readers with the ammunition to entertain their friends and family over the Christmas season.
Why not have a go at solving some of these puzzles yourself! For the answers, see the following edition of the ILN, published on 1 January, 1848.
Where to find this document
This document is from our collection, The Illustrated London News, 1842–2003. This comprehensive resource covers over 150 years, facilitating examination of an almost endless variety of historical events, concepts, and themes, British and otherwise. The extensive back catalogues of the ILN’s nine so-called “sister” titles are also available to explore on BOA’s digital archive. Visit the collection page to learn more.
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