- The Thaumatrope, an Optic Wonder
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The Thaumatrope, an Optic Wonder
- Object:
Thaumatrope
- Place of origin:
London, England (published)
- Date:
ca. 1850 (published)
- Materials and Techniques:
Printed and coloured card
- Museum number:
E.804A-1945
- Gallery location:
Museum of Childhood, Moving Toys Gallery, case 20
The thaumatrope was a popular optical toy of the nineteenth century. Cards that were usually either circular or rectangular were printed with a picture on each side. When the card was spun, sometimes using attached pieces of string, one complete image was formed. A popular example was a bird and a cage. The images were often humorous and this set features a boy being thrown from a donkey and a bull chasing a man.
The illusion is created due to the phenomenon know as persistence of vision. This is when the eye will remember an image for a brief moment and, given two images to see in a short space of time, will combine them.
