A Late 19thC Painted Treen ‘Disappearing Ball’ Magic Trick c.1900
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Origin: English
Period: Late Victorian
Provenance: Unknown
Date: c.1900
Height: 4”
Diameter: 2”
The delightful antique treen conjuring trick, formed as a turned wooden pedestal cup being bee-hive turned to a knop finial, painted in vibrant yellow, to a pressed metal interior concealing a red internal ball which appears and disappears through sleight-of-hand mechanics, whilst the second interior houses the half red painted ball; the whole with a wonderful sculptural and decorative quality and surviving from the zeniths of the nineteenth century.
The trick shows heavy, honest wear throughout with flecked paint loss and patination to both the yellow exterior and red ball, revealing layers of age and handling making it supremely decorative. The mechanism remains intact and operable.
Such disappearing ball tricks were staples of Victorian and Edwardian parlour magic; intimate entertainments performed around the domestic table. Crafted in treen and brightly painted for theatrical impact, they combine craftsmanship with deception. Today they read as both toy and object; primitive, graphic and unexpectedly modern in their bold colour blocking. It is rare now to find tricks of this age especially being in complete and honest condition.
A scarce and wonderfully sculptural curiosity; tactile, playful, and deeply evocative of the magic cabinet.
