The praxinoscope was invented in Le Puy-en-Velay (France) by Émile Reynaud in 1876 . Patented in 1877 , it was an optical toy giving the illusion of movement and operating on the principle of optical compensation . This toy will obtain an honorable mention at the Paris Universal Exhibition of 1878 and will have a great commercial success which allowed its inventor to continue his research. The praxinoscope is thus the basis of his following inventions: an animation inside a set (the praxinoscope-theater ), projected (theprojection praxinoscope ), of indefinite length (the optical theatre ) and in relief (the stereo-cinema ).You only need: