Zograscope

Unknown Country of Origin
ca. Late 18th to Early 19th Centuries

I’ve owned this Zograscope for over thirty years, having purchased it from a collector in Holland. The country of origin is unknown but appears to be Northern European. I’m fortunate that my perspective views are still colorful … and interesting.

According to Wikipedia, a Zograscope is an optical device for magnifying flat pictures that also has the property of enhancing the sense of depth shown in the picture. It consists of a large magnifying lens through which the picture is viewed. This allows someone to sit at a table and to look through the lens at the picture flat on the table. A print made for this purpose is called a “vue d’optique” or "perspective view”. In 1730, the first zograscopes, then called "optiques", were developed in Paris. Many perspective views of various scenes from France, Germany, and England were published.

Zograscopes were popular during the later half of the 18th century as parlor entertainments. Like this one, many existing ones from that time have finely-turned wooden stands, moldings, brass fittings, and fine finishes.