The History of Magic
Sixth Grade Seminar
Magic
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Magic is a performing art that entertains
an audience by creating illusions of
seemingly impossible or supernatural
feats, using purely natural means.
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These feats are called magic tricks, effects
or illusions.
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One who performs such illusions is called
a magician or an illusionist.
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The term "Magic" is derived from the Latin
word Magi.
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The same level of ingenuity that was used
to produce famous ancient deceptions
such as the Trojan Horse would also have
been used for entertainment.
History
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In the early 17th century magic was used
to frighten uneducated populations.
History
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The profession of the illusionist gained
strength in the eighteenth century.
Hieronymus Bosch: The Conjurer,
1475-1480
Note that the man in the back row is
stealing another man's purse.
 He is also applying misdirection by
looking up at the sky to misdirect the
audience from his actions.
 The artist has even misdirected us from
the thief, because we are drawn to the
magician.
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In 1584, Reginald Scot
published, The Discoverie of
Witchcraft. It was written to
show that witches did not exist.
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Scott exposed how (apparently
miraculous) feats of magic were
done. This book is often
deemed the first textbook
about magic.
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From 1756 to 1781, Jacob
Philadelphia performed
feats of magic, sometimes
under the guise of
scientific exhibitions,
throughout Europe.
Jacob Philadelphia
*Jacob Philadelphia* is believed to have been
born on August 14, 1735 and given the name
Jacob Meyer.
 He was a Jewish magician, physicist, mechanic,
juggler, astrologer, and alchemist. Meyer's
patron in England was Prince Henry Frederick,
Duke of Cumberland, for whom he performed
astrology, magic, and alchemy.
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Jacob Philadelphia
When he converted to Christianity,
Jacob Meyer took the name of
Jacob Philadelphia in homage to the home
city of the American scientist and
statesman Benjamin Franklin.
 He was also known by the names Meyer
Philadelphia and Philadelphus Philadelphia.
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Jean Eugene Robert-Houdin, the first
modern magician.
Modern entertainment magic owes much
to Jean Eugene Robert-Houdin. (18051871)
 Jean was originally a clockmaker, who
opened a magic theatre in Paris in the
1840s.
 His specialty was the construction of
mechanical automata. They appeared to
move and act as if they were alive.
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John Nevil Maskelyne (1839 - 1917) was an English
stage magician and inventor of the pay toilet and many
other important Victorian inventions.
Maskelyne and his partner Cooke
established their own theatre, called the
Egyptian Hall in London's Piccadilly
section, in 1873.
 They presented stage magic. Stage magic
uses the stage for hidden mechanisms and
assistants. Stages also control the
audience's point of view.
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Alexander Herrmann
Alexander Herrmann (1844 – 1896) was
known as Herrmann the Great.
Herrmann was a French magician.
 Alexander Herrmann is the model for the
look of a "typical magician"
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The escapologist and magician Harry Houdini took his
stage name from Robert-Houdin and developed a range
of stage magic tricks. Many of his tricks were based on
escapology ( that word was not used until after Houdini's
death).
Houdini was the son of a Hungarian rabbi.
He was skilled in techniques such as lock picking and
escaping straitjackets. He also used conjuring
techniques, including fake equipment and collusion with
individuals in the audience.
Houdini's show business savvy was great as well as his
performance skills.
There is a Houdini Museum dedicated to him in
Scranton, Pennsylvania.
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As a form of entertainment, magic moved from theatrical
venues to television specials. This opened up new
opportunities for deceptions, and brought stage magic to
huge audiences.
Famous magicians of the 20th century included Okita,
Alexander, Harry Blackstone Sr., Harry Blackstone Jr.,
Howard Thurston, Theodore Annemann, Cardini, Joseph
Dunninger, Tommy Wonder, Siegfried & Roy, and Doug
Henning.
David Blaine
Popular 20th and 21st century magicians
include David Copperfield, Lance Burton,
Penn and Teller, David Blaine, and Criss
Angel.
 Most TV magicians perform before a live
audience, who provide the remote viewer
with a reassurance that the illusions are
not obtained with post production visual
effects.
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David Copperfield
Penn and Teller
Chriss Angel
Many of the principles of stage magic are
old. There is an expression, "it's all done
with smoke and mirrors", used to explain
something baffling.
 Effects seldom use mirrors today, due to
the amount of installation work and
transport difficulties.
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Modern performers have vanished objects
as large as the Taj Mahal, Statue of
Liberty, and the Space Shuttle, using other
kinds of optical deceptions.
10 Fast Facts About
Magicians
#1
1. The most famous
member of the
Magic Circle is Prince
Charles.
 He joined the club in
1975 after
performing the
famous Cups & Balls
trick for members.
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#2. The fastest
magician alive is
Eldon Wigton who
performed 225 tricks
in 2 minutes for a
World Record attempt
in 1991.
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#3. At least fifteen magicians have died
from performing the famous bullet catch
illusion (including Chung Ling Soo,
pictured below).
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#4. The largest magic club in the world
(International Brotherhood of Magicians)
has close to 25,000 members.
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#5. Reginald Scot wrote the book The
Discovery of Witchcraft in 1584 to prove
that magic was not real. The book was his
protest against witches that were hung
because they were suspected of being the
“real deal”.
#6. Matthew Buchinger was
a popular 18th century
magician. He was born
without arms or legs and
was just 29 inches tall.
 He was a magician,
calligrapher, and musician
who played the flute,
trumpet, and more.
 He even managed to father
eleven children.
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#7. Harry Houdini chose his stage name
as a mark of respect to the father of
modern magic, Robert-Houdin.
“No performer should attempt to bite off
red-hot iron unless he has a good set of
teeth. “
Harry Houdini
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#8 The phrase “died on stage” was taken
to the extreme by Coulew of Lorraine in
1613 when he was clubbed to death by an
angry audience member using one of his
own props!
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#9. The only magicians to have stars on
the Hollywood Walk of Fame are Harry
Houdini and David Copperfield.
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#10. Magicians are good inventors. For
example, English stage magician John
Nevil Maskelyne invented the pay toilet
and his grandfather, Jasper Maskelyne
invented the typewriter keyboard.