Magic Before Houdini

I noticed that my son was reading a promotional article that promised to: "Teach the secrets of magic tricks the simple way. Magic tricks to mystify your friends and family plus magic tricks for parties and special occasions." All that I knew about magic was that you do a magic trick by letting the person anticipate what you are going to do, and while they are concentrating on your right hand, you pull the rabbit out with your left!..if you get my drift. The success of a magician lies in his or her ability to perform illusions that give the appearance of reality, as nobody really thinks that the hand is quicker than the eye. Following some research of my own, I found that it was once believed, that magicians were able, by use of supernatural powers, to exercise control over nature. Magic was, in the early stages, closely associated with religion. The king's own magicians were supposedly capable of influencing the seasons, by creating rain, thunder and lightning, as well as the necessary sorcery such as warding off enemies. They were also called upon to cure disease and cast spells on invaders and other tasks to gain the favour of the gods. Modern magic can be traced back to ancient Egyptians and Chinese civilizations. One of the oldest magic tricks is the Chinese Linking Rings in which, solid metal rings link and the unlink themselves. The Egyptians worshipped amulets Romans sought the blessing of priests called Oracles who were considered able to speak to the gods. There are ancient Egyptian records giving details of magic before Pharaoh Cheops One such Egyptian known as Dedi entertained, the slaves that built the pyramids with magic tricks and illusions. He made chickens and birds disappear and returns sometimes without heads!. He is also credited with inventing an illusion known as The Cups and Balls which sound like a forerunner to what we now know as the thimble and pea trick. In modern times, we have seen the evolution of magic as entertainment taking over from the old magic which was part of religious rituals. In the fourth century Christianity became the dominant religion of the Roman Empire and outlawed magicians. Later, in the Middle Ages, magicians were aligned with sorcerers, witches, and devil worshipers. They were regularly jailed and some were executed. Magicians as we now know them, doing card tricks, and making objects disappear, were not really seen until the sixteenth century when books on magic also became available. The first book in English 'The Art of Juggling, was published in the early 1600's By the eighteenth century , magic was well established in Europe as entertainment . One famous illusionist was Baron Wolfgang von Kempelen who invented an automated chess device which defeated many humans including Benjamin Franklin in 1783. In the mid 1900's,a Charles Mouton opened an entertainment theatre where the public paid to watch magic shows. Before that, the entertainment theatres were no more than rooms opened to the public to have a drink and see magic at no cost. Today there are countless books of magic such as the one my son was considering, that claim to show anyone with manual dexterity how to perform magic tricks....Maybe If my son does not buy that book, perhaps I will!