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Invisibility is the state of an object which cannot be seen. An object in this state is said to be Invisible (literally, "not visible"). The term is usually used as a fantasy/science fiction term, where objects are literally made unseeable by magical or technological means; however, its effects can also be seen in the real world, particularly in physics and perceptional psychology.




In mythology

People have attributed invisibility to things that are mythical, things that do not exist and are of a religious or supernatural in order to explain why they are not apparent. In the Middle Ages, fern seeds were thought to be invisible since ferns don't have seeds. They were also said to grant invisibility.[1] In medieval astronomy, the crystal spheres[2] that held up the sun, moon, stars, and planets were invisible. Historically, creatures such as goblins and brownies have also been described as invisible or able to become invisible. Currently, many entities or phenomena whose existence is disputed, such as ghosts, demons, qi, and auras, are also ascribed invisibility. In religion, gods, goddesses, angels and demons are commonly thought to be invisible, at least part of the time. Indeed, the omnipresence attributed to the monotheistic God of Abrahamic religions would seem to require invisibility, since otherwise God would be constantly visible to all people because of inhabiting all places, however it has been theorised that a being such as God would exist in dimensions not perceptible to 3-dimensional beings. For example, a 2-dimensional being would only be able to see things in 2 dimensions, length and bredth. Anything outside of these two dimensions, i.e. height, is "invisible" to them. Additionally, Hades, the Greek god of the underworld, possessed a helmet that made the wearer invisible.


  1. Eugene A. Craig and M. Lichtenstein, "Visibility-Invisibility Cycles as a Function of Stimulus-Orientation," The American Journal of Psychology, 66.4 (Oct., 1953):554-563.
  2. Cloak of invisibility: Fact or fiction? - Innovation -