Visual perception that differs from objective reality

The mystery and lore of apparitions : with some account of ghosts, spectres, phantoms and boggarts in early times / by C.J.S. Thompson.

An optical spinning toy. Coloured lithograph.

Grand philosophical, optical, & mechanical exhibition / by M. de Philipsthal.

Painting lesson : to teach the young folk to paint : colour this for scrap book / Hudson's Soap.

12 unnumbered leaves (first blank), 120 pages, 2 unnumbered leaves, 25 plates (1 double; including diagrams) ; (folio)

La perspective cvrievse ov magie artificiele des effets merveillevx. De l'optique, par la vision directe. La catoptrique, par la reflexion des miroirs plats, cylindriques & coniques, la dioptrique, par la refraction des crystaux ... / Par le père f. Ican François Nicéron.

xiv, 143 pages, 32 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations, portraits ; 23 cm.

Distortion in art : the eye and the mind / J.B. Dereģowski.

Sleights of mind : what the neuroscience of magic reveals about our everyday deceptions / Stephen L. Macknik and Susana Martinez-Conde ; with Sandra Blakeslee.

46 pages, 16 unnumbered pages, 1 unnumbered folded leaf of plates : illustrations ; 19 cm

The true history of the ghost : and all about metempsychosis / by Professor Pepper.

Galleries and Reading Room

Library

Shop

Café

It's not possible to book tickets for events at present due to a problem with the ticketing system. We're working to fix it. You can still search and check information about events but please try again later if you want to book a ticket.

We're running paid user research studies to improve Wellcome Collection online

Take part in research

Archive collection level pages, plus the archive collection treatment on the work page and in search results.

The catalogue API's shortDescription is shown on the archive collection hero and in search results.

Archive collection

Clicking an image opens its details in a sidebar instead of a modal, with the selected image highlighted in the grid.

Updated image results grid and a re-sizable viewing pane.

Larger thumbnail, plus key information and onward journey in the sidebar.

Image sidebar preview

The three thematic browsing category pages (subjects, people & organisations, types & techniques) become accessible.

Subject sub-category pages become accessible, and the subjects category page gains a sub-category menu.

Optical Illusions

Images from the collections

Images referencing Optical Illusions

Works from the collections

Painting lesson : to teach the young folk to paint : colour this for scrap book / Hudson's Soap.

La perspective cvrievse ov magie artificiele des effets merveillevx. De l'optique, par la vision directe. La catoptrique, par la reflexion des miroirs plats, cylindriques & coniques, la dioptrique, par la refraction des crystaux ... / Par le père f. Ican François Nicéron.

Distortion in art : the eye and the mind / J.B. Dereģowski.

Sleights of mind : what the neuroscience of magic reveals about our everyday deceptions / Stephen L. Macknik and Susana Martinez-Conde ; with Sandra Blakeslee.

The true history of the ghost : and all about metempsychosis / by Professor Pepper.

Optical Illusions

Images from the collections

Images referencing Optical Illusions

Works from the collections

Painting lesson : to teach the young folk to paint : colour this for scrap book / Hudson's Soap.

La perspective cvrievse ov magie artificiele des effets merveillevx. De l'optique, par la vision directe. La catoptrique, par la reflexion des miroirs plats, cylindriques & coniques, la dioptrique, par la refraction des crystaux ... / Par le père f. Ican François Nicéron.

Distortion in art : the eye and the mind / J.B. Dereģowski.

Sleights of mind : what the neuroscience of magic reveals about our everyday deceptions / Stephen L. Macknik and Susana Martinez-Conde ; with Sandra Blakeslee.

The true history of the ghost : and all about metempsychosis / by Professor Pepper.

Related topics