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Natural magic, or, Physical amusements revealed

Astley, Philip, 1742-1814, McManus-Young Collection (Library of Congress) · 1785 · London : Printed for the author, and sold by all the booksellers in England, Scotland, and Ireland, 1785. · 1 picture

Natural magic, or, Physical amusements revealed is a 1785 London magic-tricks book by Philip Astley, printed for the author and sold through booksellers across England, Scotland and Ireland, aimed at general readers curious about conjuring. The single picture is a framed woodcut of a stage performance: a tailcoated magician stands centre-stage between curtains while a table of apparatus and a boxed set-up sit to the right, with a crowd of spectators along the bottom edge. Its stark black-and-white linework and crowded audience rows suggest bold, readable staging for a poster or theatre-themed layout.

Early works to 1800 · Magic tricks

Library of Congress, Rare Book and Special Collections Division · No known copyright restrictions · More from this library