Hungarian puzzle heritage: Ernő Rubik
Ernő Rubik is the Hungarian inventor, architect and professor whose Cube became the best-known puzzle in history.
Who is Ernő Rubik?
Ernő Rubik was born in Budapest on 13 July 1944. He trained as an architect and worked as a teacher of design in Budapest. He thought about space, shape and movement, and used physical models to explain them to his students.
The Cube
In 1974 Rubik built the first working prototype of what he called the Magic Cube. He made it from wood and rubber bands as a teaching tool, to show how the parts of a structure can move independently without the whole thing falling apart. It was only when he scrambled it and tried to restore it that he realised he had made a puzzle.
The Cube was first sold in Hungary and then licensed abroad. From 1980 it was sold worldwide as Rubik's Cube.
Other puzzles
Rubik went on to invent further puzzles, including Rubik's Magic and Rubik's Snake. He has continued to work on design and education.
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