Trickery Collection

Colonel Stodare at the Egyptian Hall
Colonel Stodare the liverpudlian ventriloquist and magician (1831 to 1866) performing using an Indian Basket at the Egyptian Hall in Piccadilly, London. Date: circa 1865

Davenport Brothers
Ira Davenport on the left, his brother William on the right : preparing to bind them inside their cabinet are Mr Fay and Mr Cooper, who will ensure that no trickery is involved

Cartoon, The Confidence Trick! (Northcote and Disraeli)
Cartoon, The Confidence Trick! Stafford Northcote (Chancellor of the Exchequer) and Benjamin Disraeli (Prime Minister) ask John Bull for six million pounds to strengthen their hands at a forthcoming

Austrian medium Maria Silbert
Photograph of the Austrian medium Maria Silbert, wearing a hat and sitting in a coach outside her home in Graz, 1933. Austrian medium Maria Silbert (died 1936)

Largest ear of corn grown in Canada
Humorous card depicting the Largest ear of corn grown in Canada !! 1910

Technical College - Glasgow, Scotland
Glasgow and West of Scotland Technical College (1887-1912), afterwards becoming the Royal Technical College (1912-1956) - Glasgow, Scotland. Date: 1909

Mediumship / Carancini
Italian physical medium Francesco Carancini demonstrates table-lifting, though bound and seemingly in full light; he was however widely accused of trickery

Levitation Seance
At a dramatic seance, one of the sitters finds himself levitated while all kinds of trickery is in progress

Cabaret du Neant (Cabaret of Nothingness or Death) - a ghost show cabaret, where ghosts were shown before the amazed audience via optical trickery and special effects

Cartoon, A good idea, WW1
Cartoon, A good idea. A French soldier says he has asked his father to write to say he is dead: that way, he will be able to get leave of absence from the Front. Date: 1916

Cartoon, The Celebrated Indian Crown Trick (Disraeli)
Cartoon, The Celebrated Indian Crown Trick -- a satirical depiction of Benjamin Disraeli, Conservative Prime Minister, as Bendizzi the Great Faker, performing as a magician to various heads of state

Charlatan speaking to group of people in Rome, Italy
A charlatan, probably a quack doctor, speaking to a group of people in a street in Rome, Italy. Date: early 19th century

From Toledo - a repeating photograph
Belle Epoque Photomontage, French Theatre Actress Miss De Toledo - Lovely early photographic photomontage trickery - a woman replicated three times to fine stylistic effect by the Reutlinger Studio

Automatic photograph of sitters and Rudi Schneider at sance
Automatic photograph of sitters and Rudi Schneider at a sance at the National Laboratory of Psychical Research, 8 March 1932. Harry Price and Professor David Fraser-Harris are controlling Schneider

Cartoon, Keep your mouth shut, WW1
Cartoon, Keep your mouth shut -- a new take on a fable of Aesop during the First World War, where the fox will never be able to get the crow to open his mouth and drop the nice piece of cheese

Ted Serios, American thoughtographer
Theodore (Ted) Judd Serios (1918-2006), American thoughtographer. He took photographs which he claimed were infuenced by his own psychic powers, though several people claimed it was a trick

Harry Houdini, Tied Up
Harry Houdini the Austrian-Hungarian escapologist (1874 to 1926) being tied up by two members of his audience. Date: circa 1910

Puss in Boots challenges the Magician to turn into a mouse
Puss in Boots challenges the Rich Magician to turn himself into a mouse -- this is a trick, as Puss immediately catches the mouse and eats it

Rudi Schneider evading control of Harry Price
Undated photograph of Rudi Schneider evading control of Harry Price at a sance. This is one of series of photographs documenting Harry Prices investigations into the mediumistic abilities of

Cartoon, Translation, WW1
Cartoon, Translation. French and German soldiers discuss their respective systems. The system of getting by which the French call System D, is known by the Germans as System K! Date: 1916

Cartoon, Lorinne, or hidden love, WW1
Cartoon, Lorinne, or hidden love. A pretty young woman has been able to visit her soldier completely unnoticed, thanks to her disguise as a fruit seller! Date: 1916

Cartoon, How to get hold of some plonk, WW1
Cartoon, How Herbinet used System D to get hold of some plonk. Showing how a soldier gradually extracts wine from a large barrel in a stable. Date: 1916

Cartoon, The gourmands, WW1
Cartoon, The gourmands. Soldiers with a bowl of apples, a rabbit and a carrot promise a cook that when they return from patrol they will bring him some prisoners. Date: 1916

Cartoon, Naivety, WW1
Cartoon, Naivety. A woman is delighted that, thanks to System D, her husband has been able to get a leave of absence from the army

Illustration, The Valiant Tailor -- Pulling the piece of soft cheese out of his pocket, he squeezed it till the moisture ran out. Date: 1909

Illustration, The Twelve Huntsmen -- There was a Servant who favoured the Huntsmen, and who overheard the Lions advice to the King. Date: 1909

Powell - Conjuror
A 19th century substantially moustached magician named Powell, holding a rose Bouquet. Date: 19th century

George Davenport
The stage magician George Davenport (or Gilly-gilly ) in profile performing a cigarette lighting trick. Date: circa 1910

Houdini Preparing for Bridge Jump
The prolific Austrian-Hungarian escape artist Harry Houdini preparing for one of his many daring feats of escapology, this time a highly publicised Bridge Jump whilst in metal chains. Date: circa 1910

French Magician / Robert Houdin Performing
French conjuror Jean Eugene Robert-Houdin (1805-1871) performing a magic trick using a Impression instantanee (instant printing) machine in the mid 19th century. Date: circa 1840

E. M. Sturgess, Stage Illusionist
E.M. Sturgess a heavily moustached illusionist, standing behind an assortment of his performance paraphernalia. Date: cica 1900

Cabaret du N顮t (Cabaret of Nothingness or Death)
Cabaret du NÚí«t (Cabaret of Nothingness or Death) was a ghost show cabaret, where ghosts were shown before the amazed audience via optical trickery and special effects

A profitable crop of Onions grown in Canada! I think a certain amount of photo trickery has been employed here.... 1910

Fantasy Fishing
Two groups of fishermen make a couple of record catches on a North American river! These have to be the largest perch ever seen! 1903

Puss in Boots tells the King his Master is drowning
Puss in Boots stops the Kings coach and tells him that his Master is drowning (though he is only bathing in the river). Illustration to a fairytale by Charles Perrault, first published 1697

Poster by Burkhard Mangold
Poster by the Swiss artist, Burkhard Mangold: Der Wolf zieht um. Probably a comment on German expansionism

A batsman exhibitis four different shots
A combination action photograph of a batsman, in full cricket kit, plays four different shots, from the classic forward defensive shot (left) through to a cover drive (right)

Magician performing the cup and balls trick in front of a se
Undated illustration of a magician performing the cup and balls trick in front of a seated audience, entitled " Champy dit Connus". HPG/8/2/1 (xxxi)"

Undated automatic photograph of a handkerchief leaving a table at a Rudi Schneider sance. This is one of series of photographs documenting Harry Prices investigations into the mediumistic abilities

Photograph of a reconstruction of one of the teleplasmic ha
Photograph of a reconstruction of one of the teleplasmic " hands" or pseudopods, often witnessed at the Rudi Schneider sances, 1929

Teleplasmic hand holding basket at a seance
Photograph of a reconstruction of one of the teleplasmic " hands" or pseudopods, often witnessed at the Rudi Schneider sances, 1929

Photograph of the automatic electric photographic apparatus
Undated photograph of the automatic electric photographic apparatus used in the Rudi Schneider experiments. This is one of series of photographs documenting Harry Prices investigations into

Man and woman magicians performing tricks at table
Undated copy of colour illustration entitled, A moi la premiere partie! A moi la derniere!! showing man and woman magicians performing tricks at table. (Imprint. Chez Aubert and Cie)

Magician performing the cup and balls trick to an assembled
Undated illustration of magician performing the cup and balls trick to an assembled crowd, entitled " Le Joueur de Gobelets". HPG/8/2/1 (xxxvi)"

Tarot Card Bateleur 1500
TAROT Le Bateleur (The Juggler)

The Cat & the Fox C1870
THE CAT AND THE FOX The cat climbs the tree to escape the fox

Maria Silbert Psychic
Austrian medium Maria Silbert (died 1936) who produced many remarkable phenomena but was discovered by Harry Price to use trickery on occasion

Jacob Returns
Jacob fears to return home, suspecting that his tricked brother Esau will be angry with him : but God insists it will be alright, and Esau forgives him for his trickery

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