Manufactured by a privately owned business in Cuba in 1960, this puzzle-portrait of Comandante Ernesto “Che” Guevara speaks to the market for hero-making propaganda and revolutionary memorabilia that citizens’ trust in the Revolution then represented. A personal gift from the son of legendary freelance photojournalist Andrew St. George, the puzzle arrived at my home in near pristine condition despite its many years tucked away in the family archives. Until my own son put it together (probably for the first time since St. George bought it in Cuba), its actual subject remained a mystery. Unfortunately, we found that not only did it lack two pieces—a fact we found strangely symbolic—but it also came with an odd piece of another “heroic” puzzle portrait. To my own surprise, I knew immediately the details of this one piece of the puzzle’s smile: it was surely that of a Fidel Castro set. One can only wonder what happened to the rest. Personal Collection of Lillian Guerra.
