Trading cards and magic

Chromolithographs, often abbreviated to chromos, are magnificent illustrations of the customs and thoughts of an era. Many of them have come down to us and deal directly with the theme of magic. It is these last ones that we will talk about today. We will deliberately omit all Tom Tit's chromos on amusing physics and focus on those directly representing the conjurer in action.

It was in the 19th century that small chromos developed rapidly. Primarily used as advertising media, some are small marvels. Those presented in this article will give a small overview of the many existing ones.

The precise number of chromos directly representing magic (not including amusing physics experiments) is difficult to estimate. The task is made even more delicate by the fact that many chromos are reused by different brands. However, they can be estimated at less than a hundred different ones in total.


Some chromos are obviously more difficult to find than others. Some are also true masterpieces, such as the only known "system" chromo on the theme of magic. Reproduced below, it reveals a conjurer in relief when opened.

A particularly successful and beautiful series is worth mentioning: in its six chromos, it revealed the secrets of the great tricks of the time: Robert-Houdin's ethereal suspension method, how to make ghosts appear, or even breathe underwater – all the secrets were there!

Finally, let's present this chromo: The Clown. What does it have to do with magic, you ask? The famous cups are not far... it's up to you to find them!


All illustrations are the property of the Centre de Recherche sur la Prestidigitation and can be freely reused with attribution.

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