Puzzle, Rubik's Cube for the Blind

This puzzle is an example of a Rubik’s Cube made with raised symbols as well as colors so the puzzle can be solved by people who are blind or visually impaired.

In its solved position each face of the cube (a 3 X 3 square) shows the faces (1 X 1 squares) of nine small cubes, all of the same color and raised shape. The visible squares are red with squares, white with circles, orange with triangles, green with disks, and blue with line segments. The sealed hard plastic packaging hides the sixth face but a photograph of another example of the same puzzle shows the above faces as well as a yellow face with plus signs.

A solution for the Rubik’s Cube might not work for the Rubik’s Cube for the Blind since the raised symbol on the center piece of the blue and orange sides might be incorrectly oriented, making additional moves necessary to correctly orient those symbols.

This puzzle was made in 1981 in Hungary and remains in its original packaging. This puzzle is among Rubik’s Cube related items from the Cube Museum, which operated in Grand Junction, Colorado, from 1988 to 1991. For more information about the Rubik’s Cube and other twisting puzzles that use the same or similar mechanisms see 1987.0805.01.

Reference:

TwistyPuzzles [Rubik’s Blind Man’s Cube] website.

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