Potter & Potter Auctions held a 500-plus lot sale on Dec. 10 of interesting modern era and antique magicana. All prices noted include the auction house's 20-percent buyer's premium.
Century-spanning magicana books took several of the top lot slots in this exciting sale. S.W. Erdnase's “Artifice Ruse and Subterfuge at the Card Table” brought $8,400. This first edition was published in Chicago by the author (who goes by a pseudonym) in 1902. Perhaps the most important book on sleight-of-hand with cards, Erdnase’s work is best known by its cover title, “The Expert at the Card Table.” In the 120 years since its debut, the book has never been out of print. A collection of nine, rare 18th to 20th century magic books was estimated at $100-$200 but sold for $3,360, generating 41 bids. The grouping included Galipidio Talier's “Nuovo Plico di Tinture,” printed in Milan and Venice in 1780-1818. “The Jerx, Volume One” was estimated at $300-$500 and traded hands at $3,840. This first edition, one of a supposed 300 copies, was illustrated by Stasia Burrington. This tome is one of the rarest hyper-modern books about magic, written by “Andy Jerxman,” whose true identity remains a mystery.
This sale also featured magic posters promoting some of the best known 20th and 21st century acts. “Thurston Master Magician. Million Dollar Mystery,” was estimated at $4,000-$6,000 and realized $9,000. This linen mounted broadside was printed in Cleveland by the Otis Lithography Company around 1928 and showed the magician performing his classic stage illusion. “Chung Ling Soo” sold for $4,800. It was printed in Birmingham by James Upton Ltd. around 1910. This linen-backed poster featured an illustration of the magician in warm tones with a fiery background. Each letter of the title was shaped into a dragon. Three David Blane signed posters, estimated at $200-$300, realized $2,400. These included “Frozen in Time” from 2000, “Above the Below” from 2003, and “Dive of Death” from 2008. Blaine, one of the most prominent magicians, endurance artists, and extreme performers working today, has had numerous television specials and has broken several world records for endurance.
Vintage to antique apparatus also stole the spotlight at this key auction. Harry Houdini-owned “Tower Bean” pattern handcuffs, estimated at $3,000-$5,000, sold for $7,200. This pair from 1909 was in working condition and was said to have been owned by Houdini. They were from the Radner collection and formerly on display in the Houdini Historical Center in Outagamie, WI. A “Cup of Gold” illusion from Abbott’s Magic Company was estimated at $100-$200 and scored $2,640. Made around 1970, this gimmicked 5-inch tumbler transformed sponge balls into a paper streamer and multiple shots of whiskey. A “Silk and Water Vase” made in Philadelphia by Carl Brema and Sons in 1925, estimated at $800-$1,000, went for $6,600. When water was emptied from the spun copper vase with Grecian handles, it refilled repeatedly. Then, dry silk handkerchiefs would appear. According to the auction house, this was only the third example they had encountered, and the first with a hallmark.
And finally, 21st-century-made apparatus was another highlight in this magicana sale. A segmented ostrich egg vase was estimated at $2,500-$5,000 and hatched at $5,760. It was produced in Azusa by Owen Magic Supreme in the 1990s. According to Potter & Potter's experts, this was one of the largest and most intricate examples of this classic illusion they had ever encountered. A Ouija prediction watch was estimated at $1,500-$2,500 and realized $13,200. It was made in Arizona by Richard Gerlitz in the 2010s. This mechanically complex timepiece with a concealed internal device allowed the performer to pre-program the watch so that the hand would spell out words or reveal information chosen by a spectator, apparently at random. It was one of a few manufactured by hand.
"This sale brought our most successful year in business to a resounding, successful, enjoyable close," said Gabe Fajuri, president at Potter & Potter Auctions.
Potter & Potter, founded in 2007, is a Chicago area auction house specializing in paper Americana, vintage advertising, rare books, playing cards, gambling memorabilia, posters, fine prints, vintage toys, and magicana - antiques and collectibles related to magic and magicians.
To learn more, visit www.potterauctions.com.