2. The Light and Heavy Chest
The box in this picture was used to put down a revolution in Northern Africa. How? The 19th century antique box originally belonged to Jean Eugene Robert-Houdin, the most famous magician of his time. In the trick known as the Light and Heavy Chest, Robert-Houdin used this box to strip away the strength of those who encounter it. During his his stage shows in Paris, Robert-Houdin would say, “my money is in this box, I make it heavy so no one can take it”
Robert-Houdin brought the chest with him when he was enlisted by the French government to resolve a state department issue in Algeria. Robert-Houdin manipulated the chest to strip the power away from the strongest warrior of the local tribe to prove that the French magic was stronger than their magic.
The original Light and Heavy Chest is now kept in a mine shaft in the Salon de Magie, a hidden magic museum outside Cincinnati, Ohio. On Lost Magic: Decoded, you can watch Cohen do his own version of this illusion using weight lifters in a body building gym.
