La Stéréo Carte Postcard Stereo Viewer
France, 1900s
A colorful, fold-out stereoscope made of cardboard with 2 wedge prism lenses. It’s designed for stereo postcards that were popular during this period. To operate: fold the viewer’s lid backward, place the postcard in the slot, and slide the lid with the postcard in and out like a drawer to focus. Because of the window-like appearance of the lenses and the roof-like appearance of the lid, visitors to my collection call it the “house” viewer. Our collection includes the 2 versions shown below.
Primary Material: Cardboard
Media Format: Stereo postcard
Light Source: Natural light
Focus: Adjustable
Interocular: Fixed
Grottes de Bétharram
France, 1900s
This is a different version of the viewer above, branded specifically for the tourist spot, Grottes de Bétharram, which is a series of French caves. It came with a set of 20 “vues stéréoscopiques” depicting the caves and tourists.
