Diorama

The word diorama /ˌdaɪəˈrɑːmə/ can either refer to a 19th-century mobile theatre device, or, in modern usage, a three-dimensional full-size or miniature model, sometimes enclosed in a glass showcase for a museum.

The Diorama was a popular entertainment that originated in Paris in 1822, developed and copyrighted by Charles-Marie Bouton (1781– 1853) and Louis Jacques Mandé Daguerre (1787–1851) as an alternative to the similarly popular "Panorama" or panoramic painting used by producers in the 19th century.

Properly done, the Diorama was a relatively complex presentation, viewed by an audience in a highly specialized theatre fitted up with proper equipment. For example Wikipedia[1] gives the following description: "As many as 350 patrons would file in to view a landscape painting that would change its appearance both subtly and dramatically. Most would stand, though limited seating was provided. The show lasted 10 to 15 minutes, after which time the entire audience (on a massive turntable) would rotate to view a second painting. Later models of the Diorama theater even held a third painting."

In South Africa presentations called "dioramas" were more often presented in conventional venues, temporarily fitted up for such presentations. However, one suspects that many of the presentations advertised as dioramas, may in fact have been panoramas or simply panoramic paintings rather than the licensed Bouton and Daguerre theatrical device.

According to F.C.L. Bosman (1980, 186-7), panoramas and dioramas appeared and became popular in South Africa in 1863, and among those mentioned in sources have been:

The Cosmorama (1867-8) and The Excursionist (1867) of scene-painter R.S. Cooper,