Magic: Stage Illusions and Scientific Diversions

The huge Scientific American book of stage magic: how the great illusions, theatrical effects and trick photography of the 19th century worked, with hundreds of engravings. Introduction by Henry Ridgely Evans.

What’s inside

1. Introduction: the mysteries of modern magic — by H. R. Evans: Cagliostro, Robert-Houdin, Herrmann, Heller, De Kolta, Kellar
2. Mysterious disappearances — the appearing and disappearing lady, the mysterious trunk, the Indian basket trick
3. Optical tricks — Black art, the talking head, the living half-woman, “She”, “Stella”
4. Miscellaneous stage tricks — “Trilby”, the haunted swing, the invisible woman, magic harps
5. Conjuring tricks — flower productions, hat and coin tricks, spirit slates, second sight
6. Jugglers, acrobats, fire-eaters and sword tricks — walking on the ceiling, the human target, sword swallowers
7. Ventriloquism and animated puppets
8. Shadowgraphy — hand shadows and French shadows
9. Mental magic — Robert Heller’s second sight, the Baldwins, silent thought transference
10. Temple tricks and miraculous vessels of the Greeks — the shrine of Bacchus, magical pitchers, ancient organs
11. The origin of the steam engine; Greek lamps and toys — Heron’s eolipile, perpetual lamps, an ancient automaton
12. Behind the scenes of an opera house — traps, the flies, the gridiron, producing a new opera
13. Some remarkable stages, ancient and modern — revolving and elevator stages, Palladio’s Olympian Theatre
14. Stage effects — sunrise, moonlight, thunder, snow, waves, battle scenes
15. Theatre secrets — Wagner’s Rhine daughters and dragon, the horse race on stage
16. Theatrical spectacles — the nautical arena, a trip to the moon, cycloramas, fireworks
17. Automata — automaton chess players, the toy artist, a steam man
18. Curious toys — electrical toys, the magnetic oracle, the phonographic doll
19. Miscellaneous tricks of an amusing nature — magic portraits, the planchette table, Japanese magic mirrors
20. Trick photography — spirit photography, a head on a platter, multiple portraits
21. Chronophotography — recording the movements of men and animals
22. The projection of moving pictures — Edison’s kinetograph, the mutoscope, the cinématographe
23. Appendix: additional tricks — the magic table, “Gone”, the spider and the fly, the trunk trick, “Metempsychosis”

Albert A. Hopkins, 1897 · Munn & Co. Complete 580-page PDF. Free to download: check out at $0 and the file arrives by email and on your order page.

This classic is in the public domain. Scans come from library copies, so expect the odd stain or stamp of an old book.