The tangram is an intellectual puzzle game that originated in China, consisting of seven geometric pieces - five triangles and two quadrilaterals. The objective is to use all the pieces together to form different patterns of animals, objects, and shapes. Known as the "seven intriguing pieces" in Chinese, tangrams became popular in China in the early 19th century and gained popularity in Europe and America by 1817. The puzzle set consists of specific-sized triangles and a square piece, with the areas of the pieces following ratios to one another. Tangrams can be made from various materials through cutting shapes from a square sheet.