Impossible & ambiguous figures
Objects that cannot exist and pictures that flip between two meanings.
Impossible & ambiguous figuresImpossible TriangleThree bars meet at right angles to form a triangle that cannot exist.
Impossible & ambiguous figuresNecker CubeA wireframe cube that flips between two orientations.
Impossible & ambiguous figuresRubin VaseA golden vase, or two dark profiles facing each other.Advertisement
Pictures with two answers, or none
These figures show that seeing is interpreting. An impossible object is made of parts that each make sense but cannot be combined, while an ambiguous figure supports two interpretations equally well, so your brain flips between them.