Details of the 1900 Paris World's Fair in France

On July 13, 1892, Industry Minister Jules Roche announced in a circular that preparations had begun for the 1900 Paris World Expo, calling on the French nation to exhibit a series of products in the last year of the 19th century. A picture of the progress of human thought throughout the century. Jules Roche claimed that France will change the past situation in which the glory of Greece illuminated human thought. In the future history of mankind, Paris will be a new Athens. He believes that the hosting of the World Expo can promote France's understanding of the world - "The world is becoming smaller and smaller, distances are becoming shorter and shorter, and neighbors are getting closer, so it becomes more and more important to understand one's neighbors." "If a person knows nothing or little about his neighbours, he is at risk." In other words, let the world know France and France know the world. This classic concept of internationalization has been recognized by all nations in today's era of global integration.

In December 1892, the Paris City Council established a 20-member research committee. Its main task was to decide the location of this World Expo in France: whether it should be located in Paris or in the suburbs. Or is it located in another province? Various opinions emerged. Some suggested that the exposition should be held outside the high walls of the capital, but the official response was this: "A World Expo held in Paris can also promote the silk industry in Lyon, the ceramic industry in Limoges, and the glass manufacturing in the north." industry, and the textile industry in the east. If anyone can complain, it should be the Parisian middle class who are disturbed by the hustle and bustle of Paris during the Expo. Specifications to receive visiting relatives and friends from other provinces.”

On November 13, 1886, the location was decided on the Champ de Mars in Paris. Opponent Bergé even used mathematical methods to prove that the Champ de Mars was too narrow. Supporter Alfred Piccard used aesthetic concepts to defend the location. He said: Beauty should be more important than the size of the area. Decisions on World's Fair matters are always fraught with controversy, as was the case a century ago.

On April 14, 1900, émile Loubet, President of the Third French Republic, cut the ribbon for the opening of the World Expo. There were more than 50 million visitors to this World Expo, while France's population at the time was about 40 million. There are 8,300 companies participating in the exhibition, 60% of which are French companies.

The Chinese and Russian exhibition areas are adjacent to each other. The Russian Pavilion built a "Moscow Railway Station" and installed an 80-meter-long "sleeper train". The 120-meter-long scenery outside the train window moves outside the train at a speed of 4 meters per second. The most beautiful scenic spots along the way will be presented to passengers one by one. Passengers can enjoy the pleasant journey from Moscow to Beijing in 30 minutes. Various crossings, telegraph poles, fences, etc. move forward quickly, making people feel as if they are really on the train. In order to make the travel effect more realistic, passengers will also feel slight vibrations and bumps at the beginning of the journey, and then gradually stabilize.

After the opening of the World Expo, visitors flocked to the Expo, and various visitor guides were published. Conte's "Practical Visitor Guide" describes the World Expo as a city within a city. From the text, people today can vaguely feel the visiting conditions at that time.

The Frenchman Grimoin Sanson invented a "Cineorama" in 1897, just two years after the advent of the film, and obtained a patent. Sesong believed that it was difficult for movies to use small screens to achieve their due practical value; he proposed the use of cylindrical screens to achieve full-field projection of movie images. In order to let people feast their eyes at the World Expo, Sezon used 10 chained cameras to shoot panoramic movies. He designed a large projection hall like a racecourse on the square of the Eiffel Tower in Paris, about 10 meters high. The top is covered with a cloth curtain, and the inner wall is made of a 100-meter-long white curtain to form a circular screen. In the center of the hall is a huge balloon basket, with 10 projectors chained together in a circular arrangement under the basket.

This is a memorable moment. Just in the hall in front of the Eiffel Tower Square in 1900, the first ring-screen film in human history - "Hydrogen Balloon Travel Across Europe and Asia" was screened. Cityscapes of Paris, Brussels, London, Barcelona and other places appeared on the circular screen in sequence. One can imagine that this new form of surround-screen cinema appeared 4 to 5 years after the birth of cinema in the world, which was an astonishing initiative.