Information on Houdini-owned Tower leg irons.

Hi there,

I recently won a pair of tower leg irons that have a good provenance to Houdini (from his brother Hardeen to Larry Weeks, a major Houdini collector) from one of the two main magic auction houses – Haversat & Ewing.

I'm a Houdini buff, but these are the first set of irons/shackles/cuffs I've ever bought. They've yet to arrive, but I'm told the key works.

From other message boards, I know it's annoying when a newbie shows up and asks questions dealing just with the one thing they've got, but I would very much appreciate if anyone had any resources where I might learn a bit more about what I bought.

This is a link with the background:

https://haversatewing.hibid.com/lot/831 ... ith-letter

My thanks in advance for your expertise.

M

You have a Tower bottom key (their first model) leg irons.  The chain does not look like it was factory made.  One side has the hinge has been replaced and there is a small on one side of the cuff.  It would be interesting to see if this is a release mechanism to open the cuff by inserting a stiff wire.  I do not see this hole on the other cuff.  Maybe your pictures do not show the Bothe sides of the non repaired cuff.  The key does not look original but the lock takes a simple key.  As far as the connection to Houdini, who knows.

Ron

I have enclosed a photo of my Tower edge key leg irons and I have never known of a set that had oblong links and I think Ron would agree with me.
Hope this helps.

Spencer

To add to what Ron and Spencer have shared about your set of Tower Bottom Key Leg Irons, I will give a word of caution of Houdini Owned Items that have come from Hardeen. Hardeen was known to have faked many cuffs and said they were Houdini's to raise their value and make some extra money after Houdini's passing. He had become so brazen in doing so, that he had also said some cuffs belonged to his brother (Houdini), even when the cuffs were not made until after Houdini's death! The problem is, there really isnt any way to prove that they were Houdini's for sure. Any C.O.A. that has Hardeen's name attached to it, automatically makes me question the cuffs' provenance, tho. Hardeen ran this money making scheme for quite some time, with an untold number of "fake" Houdini owned cuffs. Just a head's up.
-Richard Knip-

that's "Hardeen"  :P

Thank you for all of this information! 

I did know that Hardeen did that. At least the cuffs are period-correct for Houdini. It's an unfortunate risk.

Dear Guest, always better to do some research before buying and not after. The key words in the letter are "which are believed to be"

It would have been better if it said "These belonged to Houdini"  as if Fact and not Faith.

'Alternative facts' are historical so it seems .

As long as you have only spent what you wanted or could afford. You have an item that maybe give you pleasure to own and not regret for the purchase.

Ian

My two cents;

Ian said it first but I am weary of the words "Which are believed to be" as well.
Those words slapped me in the face when I saw them.  I trust that this was just wishful thinking with nothing to back up any proof.
Houdini items should be 1 of a kind or in the case of the Nugent/Wresh collection, be in the book and have the corresponding numbers stamped on the cuffs.

The leg irons are the first model as evidenced by the "figure 9" keyway.  The second model keyway was symmetrical.  Your item is very desirable even if the Houdini connection fails.
I have a very similar leg iron with the same style chain so I do believe it is early factory and based on the Phelps style chain (without the pointed tip link) which was used a few years earlier.

The handcuff in my picture is the mate to your leg iron with the same "figure 9" keyway. I would be curious to see if my key would work in your leg iron.

You have a nice item, it seems to be certain that it came from the Weeks collection....enjoy it!

Quick question/observation. I see that the original poster shows a pic of the key with his new Leg Irons and that the key has two different notches in the flag. Could his leg irons be a possible example of one of Houdini's "King Breaker" modified cuffs? Thoughts?
-Richard Knip-

I stand corrected, that is the first set of Tower leg irons I’ve seen that didn’t have the characteristic twisted link chain.

Spencer

Here is a train wreck of a "Houdini Tower handcuff" auction.

The cuff is clearly a Mattatuck yet the seller states that it is a Tower cuff owned by Houdini and from a Looby collection.
I must have seen well over 100 Mattatuck and Towers cuffs that "belonged" to Houdini.   Why would he want so many of these common cuffs?
Maybe he had a reason but I am not convinced that he needed so many.
I never heard of Looby before but it is plausible that he had a nice collection.
Someone is about to overpay big time for this item and for the seller to change the CofA like this just reeks of fraud.
I would pay $150 tops for this item but he is asking 65 times over that.  ($9,700)  And he is charging $15 shipping to boot!
Even the Certificate of Authenticity seems to be doctored.  Look at the words "magic collector Dick Looby".  It looks like it is a bolder type than the rest of the letter or altered. 

This is clearly one to stay far, far away from.

   eBay number 324457520651

//www.ebay.com/itm/Harry-Houdini-Owned-Ma ... 4b8b2cde0b [HTTPS://www.ebay.com/itm/Harry-Houdini- ... 4b8b2cde0b]

Mark. This deal has been screwed from the auction house this guy got these cuffs from. He won this auction at about $2700 and is looking to make a lot of money. I get that, and that is his right to do that. Nothing "illegal" about selling for a profit. But, i contacted Heritage Auctions and asked to see the original COA when their auction was running for this set, before the new owner got them. They sent me the Gary Sohmers COA without the picture COA from Heritage attached. I told them the cuffs were actually from Mattatuck and not Towers. The guy thanked me and said he would look into it and cancel the auction if need be. Of course, they didnt. They just made a bogus COA in their name, with a picture now, to back up their story.

I saw the new Ebay auction pop up so i contacted the new owner to tell him what was going on. Told him i have all of the emails, since the beginning to prove my story and that they knowingly sold him bogus merchandise. He said he buys from Heritage all of the time and would get a corrected COA from the owner of Heritage. I tried to explain that would just make the lie, worse. The guy he would sell it to would then be getting ripped off for a lot more than this guy did! He didnt seem to care. I tried to contact Gary Sohmers on the first COA, and he sent me to Roger Dreyer. Dreyer is supposed to be the guy who identified and valued everything in the "Dick Looby Collection." Again, he just wanted the correct info to make a correct COA for the new owner, since he had obviously made the mistake when they were identified, the first time. I then broke contact with everyone and have kept the emails, in case someone ends up buying them again. I will try to bail out one more person, then after that, they are on their own. Buyer beware on this deal. I tried what I could but the whole auction network, and even the new buyer here, are all working together, it seems.
-Richard Knip-

Dear Richard,
Thank you for your detective work. It smartens me up.
Mike

Checking the link Mark posted the seller made these comments about the cuffs.

Harry Houdini Owned Mattatuck Handcuffs. A pair of Mattatuck Manufacturing handcuffs once owned by the Handcuff King, Harry Houdini, and later owned by Dick Looby. Has a hangtag with writing on it in black ink. In Very Good condition with various spots of wear and scattered rust. COA from and Heritage Auctions + Dick Looby Provenance.  

Current COAs are mislabeled as "Tower", however the tag on the cuffs reads "Mattatuck".  We are currently working with Heritage to get a corrected COA sent.  The listing will be updated when we receive it.

My question is this: The guy who originally validated and tagged everything when the Looby collection was sorted out, says he is well versed in handcuffs. How did he mistake a Mattatuck for a Tower and write the original COA? Seems to me like someone either matched the COA with the wrong cuff years later or a copy of the original COA has been made and stuck with a $125 handcuff? Heritage said they have never heard the name "Mattatuck", but there is now a tag hanging from the cuffs that says "Mattatuck?" That tag would have had to have been on the cuffs before I went through their hands. The new buyer is now getting a "corrected COA" from Heritage, which answers none of these questions. Just putting another band-aid on a unintentional wound they made on themselves. Had I not mentioned it and tracked it as far as I have, no one would have been any the wiser, in the circle that encompassed the deal. Whole thing smells like intentional fraud on many levels, to me. Buyer Beware!
-Richard Knip-