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The Rubik’s Cube was invented in 1974, and more than forty years on the craze is reaching new heights—quite literally.
Guinness World Records has certified the largest Rubik’s Cube in the world at the NINA MALL in Hong Kong. At 2.503 meters x 2.505 meters x 2.502 meters, it officially became the largest Rubik’s Cube on March 28.
Three months later and attention online has turned to the giant cube, after the Guinness World Records’ official Facebook page shared a video of its construction on June 23. In just two days, the clip has gained over 2.8 million views.
In the video, countless workers can be seen manhandling the blocks to construct it, visibly following the design of a much smaller Rubik’s Cube in some scenes. At times, workers are captured holding up the cube to check on the shape.
As for actually using it, the cube is usable, but it takes more time to do it than a regular one. The video sees four men pitching in to move one row at a time. Now, users will have an excuse for not solving the Rubik’s Cube in a respectable time.
The cube beat British puzzle maker Tony Fisher’s 2019 attempt at the world’s largest Rubik’s Cube, which stood at 2.02 meters x 2.02 meters. Fisher showed his cube to his YouTube channel in November 2019, and he has 100,000 subscribers. Unlike the team at the NINA MALL, however, he built his cube entirely alone and it took him 330 hours.
Fisher’s 2019 cube was certified by Guinness World Records in 2020, making it the second time he had earned the title. In 2016, he built a cube at 1.57 meters x 1.57 meters. In 2018, Wes Nelson created a slightly bigger one at a science museum in Canada at 1.68 meters x1.68 meters, leading Fisher to make his updated 2019 one.
“Congratulations on breaking my world record. I am kind of flattered that it took such a huge team when I did mine on my own,” commented Fisher on the video of the NINA MALL’s new record-breaking cube.
Newsweek contacted Fisher to find out if he plans an attempt on the record again in the future.
The past year has seemingly been a strong time for Rubik’s Cube records. An eight-year-old boy broke the record for solving cubes with his hands and feet at the same time in December 2020. Atharva R Bhat solved three Rubik’s Cubes at once, one with his feet and one with each hand, at a speedy one minute and 29.97 seconds.
