Winter Magic Auction

Escape Artist’s Handcuff Key Collection. Group of approximately 30 keys with accompanying identification tags gathered by Al Borklund, the escape artist Albertus, for use with a variety of manacles and restraints. Tags presumed to be written in Albertus’s hand describe keys for a Harvard Shackle, Spanish Star Cuff, Pratt Nippers, “Monte Carlo Chief of Police Original Key,” a key labeled “Dr. Pierce Phila. PA,” another labeled “Special, my invention – this cutoff key will open both Houdini’s split key cuff, also my improvement on Houdini’s split key cuff,” and over a dozen more. Many labels bear dates of purchase and other data. A second split key for a Bean Giant in the lot bears a lengthy holographic explanation of how Houdini tripped up the escape artist, Cunning, with a “faked up” Bean Giant, and how the split key was made by the former owner based on Cunning’s description of the incident.