Slide projector

The item presented here is a slide projector that uses an optical arrangement typical for a *laterna* *magica*, in which the light source is a pressure lamp burning benzine or pure alcohol vapours. Inside the wooden box of the projector, which is lined with asbestos plates (for thermal insulation), is a Mita burner manufactured by the Dresden enterprise, established in the second half of the 19th c. by Gustav Barthel. Thanks to the set of lenses the device can project glass transparencies, which are inserted in the metal carrier between the lamp body and the bellows. Projectors were often used in public shows performed at theatres and other public places in the second half of the 19th c. Their purpose was to provide entertainment to adults by impressing them with extraordinary images or photographs of remote places. Manufacturer: A. Pichlers & Sohn, Lehrmittelanstalt, Austria, 2nd half of 19th c. Inv no.: MIM 1133/VI-155 Model prepared on the basis of photogrammetric measurements Licence: CC BY-NC-SA