Travel the World with Stereoscopes

April 8-May 2, 2010

Long before the internet provided unlimited access to the world around us and before personal cameras were available, travel was the only way to see exotic and far off places.

Since traveling the world is not always an option, other mediums were found to bring the distant world back home. Beginning in the 1840s, this medium was the stereoscopic photograph, or stereocard.

First designed by British inventor Sir Charles Wheatstone, the stereocard, viewed through a stereoscope, became the most popular way for people to experience “armchair tourism.”

The stereocards in this mini-display come from the museum’s archival collection, which contains hundreds of the souvenir images from around the world. The oldest types of stereoptic photographs were produced on copper (daguerreotype) and on glass (ambrotype).

The medium became much more fashionable and accessible once the images were printed on card stock. There are two types of prints in the museum’s collection. The first is on flat paper, a style produced from 1857- 1890. The second is on curved paper, produced from 1890-1940, when it was found that the curve actually gave the images more dimension.

At first glance, it seems identical photographs have been set next to one another, but they are actually slightly different. They were taken with a camera designed with lenses two inches apart to imitate human eyes. When the cards are viewed through special glasses or a stereoscope, a threedimensional image appears. The effect is very similar to the popular children’s toy the View-Master.

See how technology has changed while our interest in travel and foreign lands has stayed the same.