Figure 1.

The Conjuror by Hieronymus Bosch (estimated 1475–1505). The conjuror on the right captures his audience attention with a game of cups and balls. Cups and balls routines were first introduced more than 2000 years ago and entail a host of classic effects of magic, such as vanishes, appearances, transpositions, and substitutions. Performing a cups and balls trick is highly regarded amongst magicians since it requires a great deal of motor skills and coordination, combined with an excellent audience management to effectively misdirect the spectators’ attention away from the method. In this painting, misdirection is so powerful that the spectator in the forefront, mesmerized by the conjuror’s performance, fails to notice that someone standing behind him is stealing his wallet.