Optical illusion that will make you gag… Is this photograph taken from above or below the stairs?
- This optical illusion has caused a fierce debate on the Internet. Can you find the correct answer?
- A photograph of a dimly lit flight of stairs inside a California cave has gone viral as people try to figure out if they are looking up or down.
It is a photo that has sparked a fierce debate on the Internet.
This optical illusion has people scratching their heads as they try to figure out if this photograph was taken from the top or bottom of this flight of stairs.
The photograph was taken in a dimly lit tunnel located in a California cave that has been a tourist attraction since 1905.
It has caused a lot of confusion since the perspective of the photograph can be seen both looking up and looking down.
Looking into the tunnel in the photograph, cave visitors can be seen on the steps and there appears to be a ‘Low Ceiling’ sign to warn people going up – or coming down?
This optical illusion has people scratching their heads trying to figure out if these stairs go up or down.
Survey
Do the stairs go up or down in this optical illusion?
The angle of the railings further confuses things as they could either slope up before leveling out or slope down before taking a steeper incline.
There has been a lot of debate on social media about the different points of view.
One Reddit user commented: “Downstairs doesn’t make any sense, unless the stairs end in a long vertical drop with people levitating.”
Another added: “Below, you can tell by the shadows on the left side of the stairs.”
And a third said: ‘At first I was like ‘obviously it’s up’ and then I blinked and now it’s impossible to tell.’
But there is a correct answer to this mind-blowing puzzle.
The tunnel, which has an extremely low hanging ceiling, was carved in 1902 by Chinese workers with just a shovel and pick under the supervision of German artist Gustav Schultz.
There has been a lot of debate on social media about the different opinions, but the correct answer is that the stairs are going down before the cave opens up to a stunning view of the sea.
The correct answer is that the stairs are going down before the cave opens up to a stunning view of the sea.
Visitors have to descend 145 mostly uneven, slippery and narrow steps into the Sunny Jim Sea Cave to reach the bottom.
Once there, light pours in and you can watch the water flow in and out of the cave from the viewing platform.
The tunnel, which has an extremely low hanging ceiling, was carved in 1902 by Chinese workers with just a shovel and pick under the supervision of German artist Gustav Schultz.
And it was used by bootleggers to smuggle alcohol and opium into San Diego during Prohibition between 1920 and 1933, when the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol was prohibited.
Similar optical illusions have long divided the internet and sparked fierce debate among friends and family.
One of the most famous was the 2015 two-tone dress that some saw as blue and black and others as white and gold.
Internet sensation: This image of the dress has sparked a debate, with viewers disagreeing over the color.
The image of the dress was first posted on Tumblr by Caitlin McNeill, a 21-year-old aspiring singer from Scotland, after noticing that her friends saw different colors in the photograph.
It quickly became an online sensation with posts discussing the original colors of the dress, and the science behind the debate, being viewed and shared millions of times.