Carta Marina, Olaus Magnus

 Liberty, 712 pieces. This cut is packed with "explorer" and fantastical whimsies (here there be dragons!). It's a relatively steady assembly though the water goes places you don't necessarily expect. The alternate solution was neat but as usual I couldn't make it stand up. 4/5

lots of multipiece/interacting whimsies

don't know why this is sideways, but the wolves chasing the multilegged horse are cool

sea monster! unusual whimsy.

don't know if this was intended, but it was possible

trust me, it's a dragon

Lunacy # 7 -- Pickup Sticks

 BellArt, 96 pieces. The double-sided puzzle increased the difficulty by a lot, despite the relatively low piece count. The irregular edges/color line cutting were also sneaky! 4/5

Venice Boat Parade

 Stave, 380 pieces. A classic Stave image with lots of clever themed stuff going on in the whimsies. 6/10

kissing and pouring wine

mermaid

rare edge whimsy

two kissing couples

fisher and fish

palace

sea serpent

W+otter Weight+s = water ways?

Daniel Merriam, Man in the Moon

 Artifact, 357 pieces. This has been on my Hoefnagel list from the beginning--so long I could've sworn I did it already, but my database doesn't have it! The copy shows that it's been around, with a bit of missing paper and some looseness, but it was still a good example of Artifact's work, with clever connectors and a difficult irregular edge. 3/5

line of sheep; I worry about potential collisions with the lamb

Park Güell di Gaudí, Barcelona, Ana Maria Edulescu

 Wentworth, 1000 pieces. So, 1000 pieces is generally too much Wentworth for me, but the picture was so beautiful I put it on my Hoefnagel list anyway. Ultimate reaction: yes, 1000 pieces is still too much Wentworth for me, but the picture was quite beautiful, and this is a style that does reward the jigsaw process, as you see how colors are echoed throughout in ways that work differently on the eye after full assembly. 3/5

Whole Lotta Dice

 Bewilderness, 137 pieces. I always like geometric cuts. 3/5

Party in the Back #3, Yokohama Ijin Shokan No Zu, Utagawa Sadahide

 Puzzlebomb, 416 pieces. I was glad to get my hands on this--Puzzlebomb's production has clearly improved a lot in terms of little dropouts, and the color line cutting is impressive; even tiny protrusions seem pretty solid, in part because of the thickness of the wood. I really enjoyed the cleverness of the connectors and the dropouts (I put the fish in because it was easier, though). In some ways the fit is a bit too tight for my maximum enjoyment, but I understand why the tray format seemed right and it certainly helps given that there aren't any multi-level pieces to keep the puzzle stacked otherwise. Anyway, if this looks appealing to you, then it is constructed well enough that you should enjoy it. Warning for tiny pieces! 3/5

devious split connectors

level one completed; love the upside-down giraffe

level 2 in place (transferring it to the frame was ... unpleasant)

level three in place

The Dream Ride

 Stave, 525 pieces. Look, I probably overpaid for this, but we had a reprint of this painting when I was growing up and it gave me nostalgia. And it is a good puzzle! 7/10

Some nice whimsies cut for color matching (not color line cutting)

pig on horse and more birds

that cat is in trouble

giraffe in flotation tube; person on turtleback; not sure they're themed--there's also a goat below

the cameraperson snapping pics of the person on horseback is also hard to fathom

must be the mouse's dream

D+hay tree+M+ink = day dreaming?