The terms labyrinth and maze tend to be used interchangeably.
Often a labyrinth implies a network of underground tunnels or enclosed chambers in a building
while a maze implies an open air or garden feature made from hedges or turf.
Outdoor mazes may be harmless amusements, ways to pack a long walk into a small space or, these days, a tourist attraction.
However, labyrinth may also be used to distinguish a unicursal design
from a maze puzzle which has branches, dead-ends and even loops.

As is obvious from the name, there is only one path in a unicursal labyrinth.
They tend to have a spiritual or ritual purpose.
Some mosaic pavement ones are found in churches as paths for penitents to travel on their knees.
Others are worked in turf or stone on small prominences (often near a religious site).
It is said to be significant that the path seems to make progress only to suffer reversals before achieving the goal.
More examples are found on rocks, on buildings as interior decoration or exterior graffiti and on seals or coins.

Cretan Labyrinth

The most famous such design is probably the Cretan Labyrinth (or Solomon's Seal).
It is quite easy to derive by a couple of different methods,
which may explain its appearance in seemingly unconnected places.
It is usually drawn in circular form on early rock etchings and rectangular form on later Roman buildings.
There are coins depicting either type or other meandering designs.
Note that although this labyrinth was shown on ancient Greek coins it would be no good as a hide-out for the Minotaur.
Theseus would hardly have needed string to avoid getting lost in a unicursal design.

An alternative theory of the purpose of the string is based on the Camonica Valley Maze.
That has some additional markings.
With the "completion" of the design from that normally depicted where the paths don't quite align,
the string clue attached to the starting corner could indicate a diagonal shortcut exit through a false wall at the centre.
Another theory relates the word tauros (bull) to the appearance of Tau and Rho characters in the reversed form of the design.

The celtic legends involved a horned man and snakes/serpent in a fortress
- which could relate to the construction of the design.
That would be rather like the story attached to moves in the cat's cradle string game.
Solomon's seal or prison was supposed to protect against demons.
Leaving alleged supernatural properties aside,
this naming may have close parallels with the celtic story and possible construction method.

In the Cretan story, the liberated youths celebrated with a dance.
In Scandinavian countries the labyrinth was used for fertility rituals and similar.
The design has also been used for maypole dancing (as opposed to simple under-over weaving).

Puzzle Maze

While a unicursal labyrinth needs no solution, a puzzle maze does.
This sort of maze will usually have an entrance and a goal, though there may be more than one of each.
The object is to solve the puzzle of travelling from entrance to goal in as short a path or time as possible.
In practice, maze walkers are expected to take a number of wrong turns before achieving the goal.
They are not actually expected to repeat the exercise or analyse the maze until they get it right.

Where a garden maze is intended more as a diversionary walk, it is likely to contain many features of interest such as statues.
Some mazes are designed to be viewed from above and will exhibit symmetry or construct a picture.
This may be true of paper mazes too, as the solver is always viewing those in plan form.

Solving a maze on paper or from above is not the same as solving one from inside.
Having an overview means that areas which are isolated from the goal by continuous partition need not be explored.
Any short dead-ends are obvious as are small loops.
Whether or not the goal is situated within a loop is less significant.
It is more relevant whether there are multiple solutions as finding the shortest route to the goal may become part of the objective.

Solving a maze from within may seem more complex but the methodology can be simple:

• Keep to one wall all the time, either left or right. This will not work if the goal is inside a loop.
• Leave a trail, eg with string or pebbles. This is not practical with other maze solvers around.
• Mark the junctions in a specific way as you enter and leave them. This may still not be practical.
• Have a map or create one as you go. This requires one to be prepared with a map or the means to make one.
• Have an instruction list for the route, eg 2nd turn left then right. Again this requires advance preparation.
• Walk randomly until rescued. It is always possible to get lucky but this isn't very reliable.

There can be additional complications with a physical puzzle maze but they don't all affect the solution techniques.
Mazes may genuinely have more than 2 dimensions or merely include occasional bridges or tunnels.
Some interior mazes have mirrors as walls to conceal the route, eg in a fairground.
Others have secret doors and passages or even traps, though this is straying more into being a labyrinthine building than a maze as such.
Finally the maze may cheat by reconfiguring when travelled or even randomly.

Try some thread mazes or read an alternative view of mazes.