A
book given by the legendary magician Harry Houdini (1874-1926)
to a bookshop owner and his wife as thanks for aiding him in
his hour of need is to be sold by Bonhams Auctioneers in Bath
on Tuesday 31 May.
The vendor recalls: My grandfather, John Salkeld (born
1826), owned an antiquarian bookshop in London which was frequented
by many of the Victorian literati such as Macaulay, Dickens
and hackeray who used it as a sort of unofficial club. Mr Gladstone,
the Prime Minister, was also one of his clients. My grandfather
used to personally deliver books ordered to the eminent politicians
home.
Another famous client of the Salkelds was Harry Houdini who
collected playbills and often visited the shop in Clapham Road.
On one occasion after successfully escaping from the London
polices manacles all part of his famous act of
course – he hid in the Salkelds shop warehouse until morning
to get away from the crowds.
Eliza Salkeld, the vendors grandmother, came to Houdinis
aid, binding Houdinis bleeding wrists with bandages.
Bonhams will be selling a copy of The Unmasking of Robert-Houdin
(1908), which was given to Eliza Salkeld on 24 November 1908
in London as signed and dated by the author, Harry Houdini.
It is expected to sell for between £2,000 and £3,000.
The sale will also feature other Houdini ephemera, including
a booklet entitled Life, History and Handcuff Secrets
of Houdini stamped with Bradford Music Hall, Monday 17th
and a poster advertising an appearance at Regent Theatre, Salford
with his inexplicable Barrel Mystery (estimate:
£300-500).
Gill Atkins, Bonhams Book specialist, says: Houdini
memorabilia is very much sought after the world over. Items
relating to Houdini from before 1910 are particularly rare because
he did not achieve his legendary status until after this date.
Also the majority of Houdinis former possessions currently
belong to various institutions in the United States, so it is
highly unusual for such a collectable item to be up for sale
in this country, especially one with such an interesting provenance.
A copy of The Unmasking of Robert-Houdin (1908)
by Harry Houdini inscribed to his fellow magician, Edward Rice,
and signed twice by the author was sold in 2001 for US$3,680.
Born Erich Weiss in Budapest, Hungary, in 1874, Houdinis
parents took him to America with them when he was four. He grew
up in Wisconsin, America and began performing magic as a teenager
first calling himself Eric the Great. After reading "The
Memoirs of Robert-Houdin," the autobiography of one of
the greatest magicians of the day, he adopted the name Houdini
as a mark of his admiration.
Houdini was probably most famous for his Challenge Act, which
saw him escape from any pair of handcuffs produced by a member
of the public. Increasingly, his escapes become more daring
and he successfully freed himself not just from handcuffs, but
from almost any location, from jail cells to padlocked mailbags.
Houdini also asked police officers in the cities where he performed
to design their own challenges which further enhanced his reputation
as an escape artist.
In 1908, the year Houdini gave Eliza Salkeld a signed copy
of his book after she helped him in his escape from
his fans, Houdini had just started performing his celebrated
milk can escape. Around the same time, he also staged
a series of manacled bridge jumps which drew large
crowds and a great deal of publicity.
Houdini died on 31 October 1926.
On 24 May 24, 2000, Bonhams and Butterfield in Los Angeles
held a historic sale of Houdini memorabilia attended by collectors
from across the globe including famous names such as, David
Copperfield, Lance Burton and David Connolly. Two thirds of
Houdinis personal collection was offered for sale, including
a large collection from the Houdini Magical Hall of Fame.
One of the highlights of the sale was a boxed collection of
wrist and ankle shackles which sold for US$80,000. The set comprised
twelve individual contraptions including a wrist-ankle-neck
shackle, two sets of wrist cuffs, a large padlock and a heavy
link chain.
For more details visit the Bonhams
web site.