Libro Magico [Magical Blow Book/Magic Picture Book]: Caduto Dalla Luna 1500 Anni Avanti La Creazione Del Mondo e Rtriovata Nei 1869.

Torino: Carlo Manfredi, 1869. MAGIC AND CONJURING. [Magical Blow Book/Magic Picture Book]. Libro Magico Caduto Dalla Luna 1500 Anni Avanti La Creazione Del Mondo e Ritrovata Nei 1869. Torino: Carlo Manfredi 1869.

Octavo (7 3/8 x 4 7/8 inches; 186 x 122 mm). In printed color facsimile wrappers. Title-page reinforced along edges. Some leaves with marginal reinforcement. Some occasional minor smudging. Overall a very good copy.

With a total of two engraved title-pages (one at front and one at back), and 64 illustrated leaves. With six full sets of eighteen different full color illustrations plus an additional six illustrations. The illustrations include a wizard, imps, gentleman and gentlewoman, soldiers, birds, harbor, church, and others.

We could only find one other copy at auction and one copy at a library (Getty).

A beautiful copy of a magical blow book or flip book (also known as a magic coloring book). This type of trick is considered the oldest example of a "manufactured prop" to be used for magic. It works by a series of small notches, or incisions in the fore-margin to create tabs and depending on where the magician places their thumb, they flip the leaves of a certain group, revealing one set of plates. Then with a movement of the finger placement, a new set of plates will be revealed.

HBS 68557.

$2,000.