Swan’s Clairvoyant Stereoscope

England, 1850s

Patented by Henry Swan of London in 1858, this stereoscope could be used with paper, glass, and books. Focus is achieved by sliding the two parts back and forth on the two metal prongs. Supposedly the viewer is meant to be held by the knob on the bottom (marked "Swan's Patent - Clairvoyant") with one's thumb inserted into the hole to move the lens board. However, we couldn't move it like that very easily. The back panel swings up and there's ribbed glass between the left and right lenses rather than a central divider piece. The accompanying locking cases are marked "The Stereoscopic Treasury" on top and have an inside divider insert for holding the cards. The viewer is then stored upside down inside the case, on top of the cards.

Green Velvet Version

We love the gorgeous green embossed silk velvet on this beauty! The case for this one has seen better days and is missing the lock and the inside compartment divider for holding the cards.

Red Velvet Version

Our beautiful red velvet viewer is not as “luxury” as the green model above. It wasn’t made with the white thumb-stop on the bottom and the velvet doesn’t have an embossed pattern. And while the wood grain on this case isn’t as fancy as the version above, this one still has the lock and the divider insert for the cards.