The mirror completes the moving pictureSourced
A phenakistoscope is viewed through its disc
A typical phenakistoscope places sequential images and slots around a cardboard disc. The viewer spins it before a mirror and looks through the slots from behind at the reflected images. The route of viewing is part of the device’s operation.
The mirror and the viewer’s position help complete the effect.
Summary / translation: Unbubly · CC BY-SA 4.0
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Phenakistoscope · Wikimedia contributors
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Reviewed: 2026-10-05