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Graphoscope
invented
around the Civil War Era
History:
At one
time, most French and English homes had a round table in the
parlor, on which was usually a Bible and several other novelty
items. These novelty items were usually optical toys like
graphoscopes.
Graphoscopes
were produced around the same time as many stereoscopes.
They were extended to accomodate stereographic views; an example
is the Holmes stereo viewer.
This device was taller and allowed people to see stereographic
views, but it was essentially of the same design as graphoscopes.
People could view any small pictures with the graphoscope--works
of art, photographs, and postcards.
How
it works:
The
graphoscope had many things in common with magnifying glasses.
It was usually composed of a single lens that served to magnify
whatever small picture was placed on the easel. Later
versions, called stereographoscopes, had two or three lenses
and allowed people to see stereographic views.
Sources:
Interview
with Dr. Ralph Wileman, July 24, 2000
Interview
with Mr. Phil Condax, August 7, 2000
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