Pentominoes have been around since the turn of the last century. They remained somewhat obscure until 1953 when Professor Solomon Golomb introduced them to the Harvard Mathematics Club. They were thrust into broader popularity in 1957 when journalist Martin Gardner wrote about them in Scientific American. From then on, they have been a popular strategy-based puzzle.

A pentomino is a flat shape made of five wooden squares that touch one or more of their neighboring pieces on one to four sides. It's kind of a convoluted definition, but it's a great puzzle that players of all ages can master. Our pentominoes are two layers deep, with 12 distinct pentomino shapes covering five squares each. The total area of the puzzle is 60 squares.

The object of the puzzle is to rearrange the pieces into different shapes or challenges. An example of a typical challenge would be to arrange a four by fifteen rectangle in 20 of the possible 368 ways in a certain amount of time. With the whole set, the possibilities are virtually endless, making this puzzle an eternal challenge for those who try to solve it. Our Pentominoes 3D set is quite special as the depth of the pieces is equal to the width, thus the crossection is a square. This gives the ability to build 3-dimensional shapers as well as flat 2-D shapes. This configuration further expands the possibilities of this terrific puzzle.

In addition to its fascination as a puzzle, Pentominoes also provides game opportunities. By placing pieces alternately on the board, the last of two players to set down their piece wins. The great thing about this game is that it will always last from five to 12 moves and can never result in a draw. This is a beautiful hardwood Pentominoes set in wood box with cover.