Counters and Conjuring

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A trip to the seaside has become a staple of our summer. From dodging the showers and sandy icecreams, many of us have nostalgic memories of the beach. No trip to the seaside would be complete without a trip to the arcades, and most of us will remember the joy of making our pocket money disappear into a hungry machine. Whilst it is all too easy to make our coins disappear from our pockets, very few of us can make them reappear on demand. Yet, this enviable trick is a way that talented magicians have been amazing audiences for centuries.

In this episode we delve into the fascinating world of games and magic. Join us on our trip to the coast to play on the best collection of old penny arcade machines in the country and as we talk to one of the nation’s top magicians to see why coins are perfect for illusions.

Gallery

A grey, silver and black metal box with slots to deposit gold sovereign coins and trays at the bottom which would have dispensed silver change

Due to the tightly controlled weight and diameter of the sovereign, this machine would have allowed someone to exchange their high value gold coin for a pocket full of small change which would have been much more useful in day-to-day spending.

You can find more information about this object on our website

A silver coin known as a groat. The obverse features a stylised version of King Edward I and the reverse a cross and a series of dots

The first coin called a groat, worth fourpence, was introduced during the reign of Edward I in the late 1270s but did not become established until the 1350s during the reign of Edward III. They would have been in daily use by the 1580s when the book The Discovery of Witchcraft was written.

A silver coin with a realistic portrait of King Henry VII on the obverse and a shield and cross on the reverse

This new coin of 12 pence would have stood out when it was first introduced during the reign of Henry VII as, unlike other coins of the era, the testoon featured a realistic portrait of the King.

A hand holding three large silver coins fanned out as if to do a magic trick. They have eagles on the side that is showing and the words United States of America around the outside.

When performing coin magic, our interviewee, Will Houstoun uses ‘Morgan’ silver dollars. These are United States silver coins that were issued in the late 19th and early 20th century and gain their name from their designer, George Morgan.