While several jewels have just been stolen directly from the Louvre Museum (the most visited museum in the world!), this incident is reminiscent of one that occurred more than 130 years ago, whose protagonist is... a magician! Let's revisit this anecdote!
Antonin the conjurer
Jacques Charazy was a conjurer born around 1859 who performed under the pseudonym Antonin and enjoyed brief success. His first appearance dates back to February 1882, when he performed a morning concert. A decree dated July 19, 1884, authorized the rental of a puppet theater to Mr. Charazy for a royalty of 600 francs. Indeed, in addition to his conjuring acts, Antonin performed puppet shows with his "Bébé-Théâtre" on the Champs-Élysées, of which he was the director. He most often performed for child audiences, and newspapers reported that he frequently presented the vanishing child or the Indian trunk acts. He performed at the Monte-Carlo Casino in 1890, and the following year at the Montagnes Russes music hall in Paris (which later became the Olympia). In 1893, however, an article in Le Figaro newspaper informed us that his success was declining, most likely due to the tricks he presented, which were too complex for young children who lacked the necessary maturity to understand them. This decline in popularity and attendance at his theater probably led him to severe financial difficulties.
A jewel... spirited away!
Perhaps it was the increasing financial insecurity that drove Antonin in 1893 to steal a "diamond-encrusted ring"? Unlike the Louvre theft, the conjurer was immediately arrested. But two years later, Antonin reoffended. A newspaper detailed his modus operandi:
"He was then operating in another store on the Left Bank, equipped with a long cardboard box that he had hidden under his overcoat and into which, skillfully, he made disappear everything within his reach."
Thus, a second trial was looming for Antonin, and it seems that this second arrest was the last. Subsequently, we find no further traces of the magician or the thief; the man seems to have mysteriously vanished... fortunately, the jewels, for their part, were indeed recovered. Let's hope that those stolen from the Louvre meet the same fate!
