Megalethoscope
Encyclopedia
The megalethoscope is an optical
apparatus designed by Carlo Ponti
of Venice
circa 1870.
In it, photograph
s are viewed through a large lens
, which creates the optical illusion
of depth
and perspective
. The albumen photographs are either backlit by an internal light source—usually an oil or kerosene lantern—or lit by daylight admitted via a system of opening doors. Ponti and others produced specially prepared photographs for use in the Megalethoscope. The photographs themselves were translucent and were coloured and pierced to create dramatic visual effects, such as using backlighting to create the impression of nighttime.
The megalethoscope was and is often confused with the stereoscope which was of a different design and purpose.
Optics
Optics is the branch of physics which involves the behavior and properties of light, including its interactions with matter and the construction of instruments that use or detect it. Optics usually describes the behavior of visible, ultraviolet, and infrared light...
apparatus designed by Carlo Ponti
Carlo Ponti (photographer)
Carlo Ponti was a Swiss-born optician and photographer from Venice.Carlo Ponti was optician to King Victor Emanuel II of Italy and inventor of megalethoscope, a viewing device for photographs.-References:...
of Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
circa 1870.
In it, photograph
Photograph
A photograph is an image created by light falling on a light-sensitive surface, usually photographic film or an electronic imager such as a CCD or a CMOS chip. Most photographs are created using a camera, which uses a lens to focus the scene's visible wavelengths of light into a reproduction of...
s are viewed through a large lens
Lens (optics)
A lens is an optical device with perfect or approximate axial symmetry which transmits and refracts light, converging or diverging the beam. A simple lens consists of a single optical element...
, which creates the optical illusion
Optical illusion
An optical illusion is characterized by visually perceived images that differ from objective reality. The information gathered by the eye is processed in the brain to give a perception that does not tally with a physical measurement of the stimulus source...
of depth
Depth perception
Depth perception is the visual ability to perceive the world in three dimensions and the distance of an object. Depth sensation is the ability to move accurately, or to respond consistently, based on the distances of objects in an environment....
and perspective
Perspective (visual)
Perspective, in context of vision and visual perception, is the way in which objects appear to the eye based on their spatial attributes; or their dimensions and the position of the eye relative to the objects...
. The albumen photographs are either backlit by an internal light source—usually an oil or kerosene lantern—or lit by daylight admitted via a system of opening doors. Ponti and others produced specially prepared photographs for use in the Megalethoscope. The photographs themselves were translucent and were coloured and pierced to create dramatic visual effects, such as using backlighting to create the impression of nighttime.
The megalethoscope was and is often confused with the stereoscope which was of a different design and purpose.