12-slot metal drum zoetrope

The zoetrope is an optical toy invented simultaneously in 1834 by William George Horner and Simon Stampfer. Based on retinal persistence and the phi phenomenon, the zoetrope creates the illusion of movement of a drawn figure. A drum with ten to twelve slits on its upper half contains a strip of drawings depicting a cyclical movement. The drum is fixed to an axle at its lower base, allowing it to rotate. The movements of the animated sequences are perceived in a loop by viewing them through the slits as they rotate. Retinal persistence links each drawing to the next, giving the illusion of continuity, but the obstruction caused by the passage of the drum's solid sections erases this retinal persistence, allowing the drawings to be perceived one after another. These visual and psychological illusions are at the heart of the invention of cinema.

Francis Ford Coppola and George Lucas named their production company, American Zoetrope (Zoetrope Studios), in homage to the machine that was the starting point for Thomas Edison's research, which led to the creation of the first camera in 1891.