Night Before Christmas Disney’s Magic Lantern Slides

5C From Walt Disney’s Silly Symphony. Story first published by Wm. Collins Ltd. Glass Hand-Colored Slides. Mid 1900s

Notes

Magic lantern slides were an early form of visual entertainment popular from the mid-1800s to the early 1900s. These slides were created for use with a magic lantern, an early projector that illuminated images on a glass slide and projected them onto a screen or wall. Artists painted the images directly onto glass plates using transparent or semi-transparent paints, allowing the light to pass through the artwork when projected. The fine details were carefully painted by hand, often with layers of color to achieve the desired effect.

The process of creating these slides involved painting intricate scenes, portraits, or illustrations on the glass surface. Some slides were entirely painted, while others combined photographic images with hand-painted details for a more colorful result. Once completed, the slides were mounted in a frame to fit into a magic lantern, which was typically powered by a candle or oil lamp, later replaced by gas or electric lights. The projector would shine light through the slide, and a lens would enlarge and project the image onto a screen or wall.

The "Night Before Christmas" from Walt Disney's Silly Symphonies is an animated short that brings the classic Christmas poem to life. The film, released in 1929, features colorful and whimsical animation, with a focus on Santa Claus and his reindeer as they prepare for their Christmas Eve journey. These slides are an at home version of the short that could be viewed with a magic lantern. The story closely follows the original poem by Clement Clarke Moore, highlighting scenes like Santa's arrival on the rooftop, the delivery of presents, and his departure with a joyful sleigh ride into the night. The colored lantern slides used in the production brought a vibrant, magical atmosphere to the festive tale, blending Disney’s signature animation style with the holiday spirit.

Description

Twelve colored slides in two glass slides with red cloth seal around the edges. Each slide is 1 1/2in x 5 1/4in painted in vibrant colors. Comes in original vintage pictorial box with original slide dialogue pages. Fully intact.