Maison de la Magie (Blois)
French museum of magic
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Maison de la Magie Robert-Houdin (French for "Robert-Houdin House of Magic") is a museum which faces the Royal Château de Blois. It is located in the Loir-et-Cher département in the Loire Valley, in France, in the center of the city of Blois.[1] As a museum of France and bearing the official label of "Musée de France", it is the only public museum in Europe which incorporates in one place collections of magic and a site for permanent performing arts.[2][3] The creation of such a site is directly linked to the personality of Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin, a famous French illusionist born in Blois in 1805.[3][4]
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| Established | 1998-06-01 |
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| Location | 1 bis, place du Château, 41000, Blois, France |
| Website | Official website of the House of Magic |
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History
Inaugurated in 1998, the museum highlights the life and work of Robert-Houdin—multi-talented illusionist, prestidigitator, inventor, clockmaker and maker of automatons.[4]
In 1981, descendants of Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin left the building and all its contents to the town of Blois with a stipulation requiring they be open to the public.[1] A total of 170 objects that were made or collected by Robert-Houdin are in the museum.[3]
The museum hosts a number of events, some of which are recurring. The include: exhibition of portraits of the greatest magicians; magical encounters (on weekends in July and August); lectures on Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin; evening shows; proceedings of 'the Gala magic clubs of Blois'; and awards to the best magical practitioners.[1][2]
Guided tours are conducted by illusionists.[4]
Attractions
Highlights include: a six-headed dragon automaton, which was constructed by artists Michel and Jean-Pierre Hartmann[1] and which operates every half-hour; the rotunda, which contains artefacts and displays about the history of magic, art and music;[1] the Greek temple honoring jugglers of the Middle Ages, the physicist Pinetti (eighteenth century magician Joseph Pinetti Willedall de Merci), and genius inventor Buatier De Kolta;[1] a life-sized kaleidoscope[4] and the 'chessboard of the optical illusions';[1][4][5] an exhibition of "The firm of Robert-Houdin fantastic" (Level 1), displaying his watchmaking workshop, scientific research (in optics and electricity) magical craft and 'the mysterious clock'.[1] On Level 3, the "hallucinoscope" ("brainchild" of Gerard Majax) immerses the participant into the world of Jules Verne and his 1870 novel Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas.[1]
Another area is the "Georges Méliès space", which honours him as a magician and as the father of film special effects.[1]
Magic shows are conducted daily[1][4] and the building is open daily during the tourist season.[2][4]