Visual Instruction: The use of the optical lantern in Dutch academic teaching practices, 1890-1940

The introduction of projection of photographic light images in academic teaching in the Netherlands was a fitting response to the increased number of students in the late 19th century: while the professor was explaining, everyone saw the same illustration material. Moreover, image projection allowed more examples to be shown in a shorter time frame. This thesis focuses on the role of the optical lantern in knowledge transfer at Dutch universities between 1880 and 1940. To interpret the different roles of projection, I chose to examine three academic disciplines: botany, art history and dentist... Mehr ...