This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 2/27/2021
Rogers, John (American, 1829 – 1904). The Traveling Magician. New York, 1878. Fine plaster sculpture showing an itinerant magician performing for three children. He produces a rabbit from his hat, while a secret assistant holds a pigeon behind the table, in readiness for the next trick. 15 x 15 ½ x 23”. Tiny chips and wear around base, but professionally restored and repainted to very good condition. Rogers’ slice-of-life sculpted scenes gained great popularity with the burgeoning ranks of middle-class American homeowners of the Victorian era. At the height of their popularity, more than 80 different “groups” were available. The Traveling Magician is perhaps the most sought-after of the Rogers groups, the sculpture showcasing not only the trademark rabbit-from-hat trick, but all at once the astonishment, wonder, and boredom experienced by the spectators watching “Mons. Cheatum’s” performance, and at the same time allowing viewers a behind-the-scenes view of how – apparently – the magician’s feats were secretly accomplished.