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THE POLYTECHNIC GHOST: Pepper’s Ghost, Metempsychosis and the Magic Lantern at the Royal Polytechnic Institution
Abstract
The stage illusion Pepper’s Ghost is familiar from its use in theatres and fairground booths, and as the starting point for a whole branch of ingenious magical illusions. This article traces its development at London’s Royal Polytechnic Institution under the aegis of its Honorary Director, John Henry Pepper. It explores the creative environment and facilities that made the Polytechnic so ideally equipped to nurture Henry Dircks’ fledgling invention, and charts its subsequent development there both in ghost lectures and in a unique form of entertainment combining the stage‐based Ghost with screen‐based dissolving views.
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“a similar technique was involved in the illusion known as Pepper ' s Ghost, which was first presented at London ' s Royal Polytechnic in 1863 and combined real actors with projected images (Brooker 2007).”
From A short history of superimposition: From spirit photography to early cinema (2012) · cites this paper as Brooker 2007
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A short history of superimposition: From spirit photography to early cinema
Natale, S. (2012) · Early Popular Visual Culture · doi:10.1080/17460654.2012.664745 · Cited by 46
Metadata
- Authors
- Brooker, J.
- Corresponding author
- Brooker, Jeremy
- Venue
- Early Popular Visual Culture
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2007-07
- Volume
- 5
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 189-206
- ISSN
- 1746-0654 (ISSN-L)
- 1746-0662
- OpenAlex
- W1596246388
- Cited by
- 59
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2025: 1 · 2024: 1 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 3 · 2021: 3 · 2020: 27 · 2019: 3 · 2018: 2 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 3 · 2015: 3 · 2014: 1 · 2013: 1 · 2012: 1
- FWCI
- 2.14
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Early Popular Visual Culture (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › History and Philosophy of Science › Historical Studies and Socio-cultural Analysis
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › History and Philosophy of Science › History of Science and Medicine
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Visual Arts and Performing Arts › Art, Technology, and Culture
- Keywords
- Pepper's Ghost, stage illusion, magic lantern, Victorian entertainment
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Cite CoChat for the checks on this page, and the paper for its own findings.
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- CoChat. (2026). Citation check: THE POLYTECHNIC GHOST: Pepper’s Ghost, Metempsychosis and the Magic Lantern at the Royal Polytechnic Institution. https://app.cochat.ai/papers/10.1080/17460650701433517
- The paper
- Brooker, J. (2007). THE POLYTECHNIC GHOST: Pepper’s Ghost, Metempsychosis and the Magic Lantern at the Royal Polytechnic Institution. Early Popular Visual Culture. https://doi.org/10.1080/17460650701433517
