All children cherish their first experience with a toy book. With each turn of the page, there are pictures that jump out, wheels that spin, and new doors to open. There are pictures that dazzle or spook, pictures that sparkle and inspire, and pictures that tell us old or new stories in a standout fashion.
Movable books began long ago with turn-up books, also known as Harlequinades, which were created around 1765. These involved the simple mechanism of flipping sections of a page over to change the picture and move the story forward. The Clarke Historical Library has an example that tells the story of Aladdin or the Wonderful Lamp from 1880. You can view the tale of Aladdin on his adventures, each flip of a page turning the picture into something new, as pictured here:
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| Harlequinade #1 |
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| Harlequinade #2 |
Also from 1880, we have The Aquarium, which features a pop-out page showing little children observing in wonder the brightly colored fish swimming about in a tank.
Movable books have come a long way since the nineteenth century. Many of them retell famous tales, like The Chronicles of Narnia, with scenes that make you feel like you’ve just passed through the wardrobe or went sailing with King Caspian.
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| "Passing through the Wardrobe" |
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| "Sailing with the King" |
The Clarke also has pop-up books that are more educational. This one, appropriately titled Shakespeare's Globe Theater, gives children the opportunity to re-enact the works of Shakespeare in a detailed replica of the Globe Theater. This book includes excerpts from several Shakespearean plays and paper characters to put on the stage.
Or, if you're at all interested in the man who invented the moveable type and the printing press, you may want to take a look at the pop-up story of Gutenberg’s Gift.
After seeing just a few samples from the Clarke's collection of pop-up books, you may feel inspired to create your own 3D masterpiece. The Clarke has several pop-up books that will teach you how and the possibilities will become endless with the worlds you can create and the places you can go.
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| The Elements of Pop-Up |
If you've enjoyed seeing these pictures of the movable books, you may want to pay a visit to the Clarke to explore all of the different ways many artists and engineers have brought animation to the page. These items are more impressive in person and so is the entire collection found in the Clarke. We've been making more room for new additions lately, so you may want to browse the catalog to see if we've got a pop-up version of your favorite story!