Though it sounds like something out of Disney World, this Cyclorama was created in the 1880s, and the concept--a huge, 360-degree three-dimensional cylindrical painting viewed from a rotating platform--dates back to a century earlier. Cycloramas were the rage of 18th- and 19th-century Europe, Russia, Japan, and later, the United States, depicting subject matter ranging from the splendors of Pompeii to Napoleonic battles. Enhanced by multimedia effects and faux terrain extending 30 feet from the painting into the foreground, they were the forerunners of newsreels, travelogues, and TV war coverage.

The one you'll see here--a 42-foot-high cylindrical oil painting, 358 feet in circumference (on about 16,000 sq. ft. of canvas)--depicts the events of the Battle of Atlanta, on July 22 1864, in meticulous detail. It took 11 eastern European artists, working in the United States in the studio of William Wehner, 22 months to complete the project.

For 21st-century tourists, the concept itself is as interesting as the action depicted, and the restoration is incredibly impressive. Though painted on fine Belgian linen in the painstaking style of the 19th-century art academies, the work suffered in moves from city to city, and later (when motion-picture epics made cycloramas passé) from neglect. Well-intentioned but incompetent attempts at restoration caused further damage. In the 1970s, a severe storm waterlogged the painting, causing seemingly irreversible damage.

But Mayor Maynard Jackson recognized the historic and artistic importance of Cyclorama; under his auspices, $11 million was raised for its restoration. It took 2 1/2 years for renowned conservator Gustav Berger and his crew to repair the damaged work, a process that included mending more than 700 rips in the canvas. In the auditorium itself, the Cyclorama viewing is preceded by a 14-minute film about the Battle of Atlanta. The total program lasts about 35 minutes.

The fascinating story of Cyclorama's development and restoration is related in a video format near the auditorium entrance. Cyclorama's central theme is Gen. John B. Hood's desperate attempt to halt Sherman's inexorable advance into the city. Comprehensively narrated, and complete with music and sound effects, including galloping horses and cannon fire, it vividly depicts the troop movements and battles on the day in which the Confederates lost 8,000 men, and the Yankees lost 3,722. A figure highlighted far beyond his historic importance is Gen. John A. Logan of the Federal Army of Tennessee (who commissioned the painting at a cost of $42,000 as a campaign move in his bid for the vice presidency). He's shown gloriously galloping into the fray, bravely exposing himself and his men to enemy fire. The work was originally called Logan's Great Battle.

The building housing Cyclorama also comprises a museum of related artifacts, the most important being the steam locomotive Texas from the 1862 Great Locomotive Chase. Other exhibits include displays of Civil War arms and artillery, Civil War-themed paintings, portraits of Confederate and Union leaders, "life in camp" artifacts and photographs, and uniforms. You'll need about an hour and a half to see the museum in full if you visit both floors.

Note: No video cameras are allowed inside the Cyclorama auditorium.