Dreamland with Chevalier Ernest Thorn
Dreamland with Chevalier Ernest Thorn (22nd September 1853 -21st May 1928) was a touring magician and inventor from Austria. After first being an assistant to Bellachini, he made extensive tours of Europe, America and the Orient. He was assisted by his wife Julia. His act An Hour in Dreamland introduced a number of his creations. Among his innovations was the cremation illusion in which his assistant vanished in flames as she stood within an asbestos curtain. Another was "Noah's Ark" in which a model of the Ark, first shown empty, produced various animals, climaxing in the production of Noah's wife. The image shows a black and white photograph of Thorn asleep in a chair surrounded by an illustrative dreamlike scene. This features a woman floating behind him with a flowing dress and a white dove flying beside her
