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AEDLe Decapite Recalcitrant/Trick Decapitation Cane.
Live Auction in Progress ... Currently on Lot Two ways to bid:
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About Auction
LiveJun 20, 2026
Highlights of this closely-curated sale include remarkable rarities from the golden age of conjuring: a diverse array of Houdiniana, Victorian magic apparatus, relics from the stages of St. George's Hall, rare posters, select modern props, and choice ephemera. Purchase Catalog Potter & Potter Auctions info@potterauctions.com
View Full Catalog (362)
- Lot Description
Le Decapite Recalcitrant/Trick Decapitation Cane. Circa 1890. Being a segmented wooden cane topped with a finely carved ebony head, resting on carved wooden shoulders. Amazingly, a small knife can be passed through the neck of the carved bust without separating it from its mounting. Brass ferrule unscrews to reveal a compartment for the tiny bone-handled knife. Overall length of 38 1/4".
Trick canes of this nature became popular in the Victorian era and took their name from a performance at the Theatre Robert-Houdin in which a man was decapitated on stage without any ill effects. Years later, a smaller and less expensive version of this trick was made by Willman in various forms (including one with a Mickey Mouse head), and even later the method was used for a popular pocket novelty sold in joke shops worldwide. This is perhaps the best and most elegant version of this clever yet simple technology put to use in service of a magic trick.
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