Rubik's Cube: The story behind the puzzle 99% people can't solve

Ernő Rubik, a Hungarian academic, unintentionally created a global phenomenon when he invented the Rubik's Cube in 1974 as a teaching tool for his architecture students. 

The invention, eventually renamed the Rubik's Cube, would become the most popular puzzle toy in the world, with more than 350 million sold as of 2018. 

Initially not designed as a toy, the cube became a sensation due to its simplicity, iconic design, and the challenge it presented. 

He did not even think about whether the cube – that would ultimately make his name famous the world over – would be successful, he told the BBC's Terry Wogan in 1986.

"I was not worried because I never decided to do that, that was nothing that I was running for," he said. 

The cube's hidden mechanism allowed twisting and turning, jumbling the colours for users to solve. 

Rubik himself took a month to solve it initially.

How was it created? 

In 1974, he was working as a professor of architecture at the Budapest College of Applied Arts. Believing that the best way to teach his students was to show them, he wanted to create something they could play with to get them thinking creatively about geometric forms and spatial relationships.

His aim was to make something tactile and mobile, that was simple enough for his students to understand but contained some kind of problem to be solved. And also, importantly, it would challenge them to persevere when faced with a complex, frustrating puzzle.

Ernő Rubik crafted a paradoxical design for his invention, the Rubik's Cube, creating a solid, static object with fluid movement. 

Initially devising a wooden cube with a hidden mechanism, he added colour to the squares after giving them an initial twist, ensuring the visibility of their dynamic movement. This unique approach contributed to the cube's iconic design and challenging nature.

He painted the faces of the squares yellow, blue, red, orange, green and white. He gave it a twist, then another turn, then another, and kept twisting until he realized he might not be able to restore it to its original state.

He was lost in a colourful maze and had no clue how to navigate it. "There was no way back," he writes in his book "Cubed: The Puzzle of Us All."

That's where the allure of his cube lies. It is seemingly simple, and highly captivating, yet equally frustrating to solve for most people.

Becoming a global phenomenon

Originally popular among designers and mathematicians in communist Hungary, the Rubik's Cube gained international fame after Ideal Toy Corporation picked it up at the Nuremberg Toy Fair in 1979. 

Renamed and sold globally in 1980, it captivated millions, leading to competitions and a craze for "speedcubing." 

By 1982, over 100 million Rubik's Cubes were sold, and it became a cultural icon with appearances in art, music, and film.

Despite its decline in popularity, the Rubik's Cube continues to be sold, with estimates exceeding 400 million units sold to date. 

Ernő Rubik, driven by a passion for design problem-solving, established a foundation to support young inventors in Hungary but never replicated the success of his iconic cube. 

The Rubik's Cube's enduring appeal is evident in its continued presence in popular culture and the ongoing achievements of dedicated fans breaking records in unique solving scenarios.