The Castle of Shadows, a 15th Century Virtual Reality Room
In 1420, Venetian engineer Giovanni Fontana proposed an elaborate mechanical room he dubbed the Castellum Umbrarum, or “castle of shadows.” Sound awesome? It is. In a recent paper, French professor Philippe Codognet described it as “a room with walls made of folded translucent parchments lighted from behind, creating therefore an environment of moving images,” adding…