The thaumatrope is a small toy that consists of a small circular object with a animation picture on both sides of it with two pieces of string or ribbon attached to the object. Spinning the round object with the pieces of string rapidly will combine the two separate pictures into one complete image creating what is known as the persistence of illusion. The thaumatrope was invented by John Ayrton Paris in the year 1824.
To make a thaumatrope you would need
- Scissors
- A piece of cardboard
- Double-sided tape
- A circle punch
- Two pieces of string or ribbon
- A black marker pen
Advantages - It is cheap and very simple to create.
Disadvantages - It requires a certain level of artistic skill to create.
Here are a couple of videos relating to the thaumatrope:
