What does stereograph mean?
A stereograph is a photograph or pair of photographs designed to be seen through a stereoscope, an optical device that combines the two slightly different views into a single image appearing to have depth. Stereographs are particularly associated with the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, when cards containing paired photographs were widely produced for home and public viewing. Their subjects included landscapes, architecture, travel scenes, scientific subjects, and notable events. Today the word is encountered mainly in historical, photographic, and collecting contexts rather than everyday speech. Although it is sometimes used loosely for any stereoscopic image, its more precise sense refers to the photographic material intended for a stereoscope. A stereograph should not be confused with the stereoscope itself: the former is the image, while the latter is the viewing apparatus.
nounA photograph or pair of photographs intended to be viewed with a stereoscope, causing the image to appear three-dimensional. The term may also refer more generally to a stereoscopic image.
- A photograph, or pair of photographs, intended for stereoscopic viewing so that it appears three-dimensional.
"He adjusted the stereograph in the viewer until the distant mountains appeared to project from the page."
"The antique shop displayed a stereograph of a cathedral beside an assortment of wooden stereoscopes."
"Her history lecture compared popular stereographs with the later use of photographs in stereoscopic film."
The standard plural adds -s; each individual stereographic photograph or card is one stereograph.
"The museum preserves hundreds of stereographs depicting landscapes and architectural landmarks."
A stereograph used two side-by-side images to turn a flat card into a convincing three-dimensional world.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of stereograph
The English word combines the combining forms stereo- and -graph. Stereo- comes from Greek stereos, meaning “solid,” while -graph derives from Greek graphein, meaning “to write” or “to draw.” In stereograph, these elements came to denote a graphic image designed to appear three-dimensional through stereoscopic viewing.
How stereograph is actually used
The word is chiefly historical and technical. It is still encountered in discussions of Victorian visual culture, photographic history, and the collecting of stereographic cards, but it is not normally used for an ordinary photograph.
Easily confused with stereograph
A stereograph is the stereoscopic image being viewed, whereas a stereoscope is the optical device that makes it appear three-dimensional.