Pythagorean Prediction

This powerful, self-working prediction effect uses a special thirty-three-card “Piquet pack”. It works particularly well when performed directly after “Pinetti’s Prediction”.

“Pythagorean Prediction” is the third trick in the Piquet Pack Series.

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On This Page

Effect
Background & Credits
Requirements & Preparation
Method & Presentation
Performance Tips & Additional Ideas
Afterthoughts

Effect

First, a spectator thoroughly shuffles a pack of Piquet cards, and you write a prediction on a piece of paper. Then, you deal the top card of the pack face up on the table and note its value. Next, you deal cards into a pile so the number totals ten. For instance, if the face-up card is a Three, you deal seven cards to the table, and then the rest of the pack is placed on top.

The new top card is dealt face-up to the table, overlapping the first card. Once again, you deal cards to the table to make the card’s value equal ten. The process is repeated again, leaving three random cards face up on the table. Finally, the sum value of these three cards is calculated. For example, the total would be thirteen if the three face-up cards are a Three, a Four and a Six.

Finally, the same number of cards as the sum value is dealt from the pack, in this case, thirteen, and the last card dealt is turned face up. To everyone’s amazement, you reveal that you wrote this card’s name on the piece of paper before the trick began!

Background & Credits

The fascinating mathematical principle at the heart of this trick is an old one. It can be found, in one form or another, in many of the early magic books, such as the one written by Professor Pinetti in 1784 (see Chapter XIV of Physical Amusements and Diverting Experiments for an example of a convoluted trick using the same underlying principle). For this reason, it is impossible to know who discovered it first. In addition, various tricks using the principle often appear in magic books for beginners.

Using the mathematical method with only three or four piles appears to originate in the early twentieth century. In contrast, Pinetti’s trick exhausts a full fifty-two card pack, often resulting in the formation of seven or eight piles. One of the first tricks to use this more minimalistic approach was a “Prophetic Card Discovery” in The Tarbell Course in Magic Volume II (Revised Edition), published in 1942. The trick is uncredited. A few years later, in 1950, the same principle was used slightly differently in “Mathematical Finder” in the classic magic book Scarne on Card Tricks by John Scarne. A few pages further in the book, you’ll also find the “Allerchrist Card Trick”, credited to Bert Allerton and Henry Christ, hence the strange name of the trick. Henry Christ is credited with developing “the principle used” in the book. In both of these tricks, instead of counting up to ten, the instructions suggest counting down from ten and stopping dealing when a card coincides with its value being called out. Finally, in 1956, the same trick appeared under “A Baffling Prediction” in Martin Gardner’s Mathematics, Magic and Mystery (see page 8). The reverse-counting improvement was again credited to Henry Christ. 

There is also a detailed explanation of the principle in Roberto Giobbi’s Card College Lightest, first published in 1993, which is well worth reading. See “Numerology” on page 88.

In this particular trick, I’ve decided to deal out a total of three piles. I’ve also changed the handling a little and added a presentation based on Pythagoreanism, the philosophical school and religious brotherhood believed to have been founded by mystic mathematician Pythagoras (best known for his theorem that states that, in any right-angled triangle, the square of the hypotenuse is equal to the sum of the squares on the other two sides). This quirky presentation helps hide the mathematical nature of the method employed.

Requirements & Preparation

You’ll need a piece of paper, a pen and a special deck of thirty-three cards to perform this trick. First, remove all the high cards—the Nines, Tens, Jacks, Queens, and Kings—from the pack. This leaves you with only the Aces, Twos, Threes, Fours, Fives, Sixes, Sevens, and Eights in each suit. Then, add one Joker to complete your special “Piquet pack”.

I must confess that this isn’t an actual Piquet pack. A genuine Piquet pack consists of thirty-two cards, not thirty-three, and comprises the Ace, King, Queen, Jack, Ten, Nine, Eight, and Seven in each suit. However, this specific setup offers certain benefits when performing this particular trick, as you’ll shortly learn.

If you want to use an authentic Piquet pack for this trick, you can certainly do so. However, it’s important to note that a Piquet pack only contains thirty-two cards, whereas this trick requires a deck of thirty-three cards. Therefore, you must add a Joker to the pack to complete the setup either way.

Method & Presentation

Begin by handing the pack of cards to a spectator and asking them to shuffle it thoroughly. Once they have finished mixing, ask them to cut the pack several times to ensure the deck is well-mixed. While the cards are being shuffled and cut, try to catch a glimpse of the bottom card of the pack without drawing attention to yourself. If you cannot see the bottom card, you can wait until the cards are returned and then quickly look at the bottom card. As a last resort, you can perform an all-around-square-up of the pack and peek at the bottom card. Again, remember to be subtle and make it appear as though you are simply squaring up the pack. Any suspicion at this point could ruin the effect.

Place the shuffled and cut pack on the table, and then engage your audience by asking, “Have you ever heard of numerology? It’s the belief in the mystical properties of numbers. Let’s put it to the test, shall we?” This way, you’re not directly claiming your belief in numerology but framing it as a fun experiment.

Next, pick up the pen and paper and say, “Before we begin, I’ll make a prediction. Please be quiet while I concentrate. I need to listen to the spirits for guidance.” Write down the full name of the bottom card of the pack on the paper, fold it up so that no one can read your prediction prematurely, and drop it into a clean glass or onto the table.

Deal the top card of the pack face up onto the table. Say, “Did you know that ten is considered the most powerful two-digit number in numerology? According to the Greek philosopher and mathematician Pythagoras, ten represents the Universe and the sum of human knowledge. Let’s use this powerful number to generate a random card.”

Now, deal enough cards onto the table, face down, to make the value of the face-up card equal ten. For example, if the face-up card is a Three, you should deal seven cards onto the table. Once you’ve dealt the correct number of cards, drop the remainder of the pack onto the pile, then pick everything up as one.

Next, deal another face-up card to the table, overlapping the one already there, as you say, “Let’s perform the Pythagorean ritual one more time to make sure that the Universe is guiding us.” Next, deal enough cards to the table to make the value of the face-up card equal ten, then drop the talon on top. Finally, deal a third face-up card to the table and repeat the entire process one last time.

“Let’s use the power of Pythagoras to pick another card at random,” you tell your audience. As you say this, point to the three face-up cards before you. “Add up their values,” you continue, “and deal that number of cards face-down onto the table.” As your participant deals, count the cards, building suspense as you do so. Once the cards are dealt, turn over the pile’s top card and reveal its identity. “The spirits have spoken,” you declare dramatically. “Let us consult our prediction to see if they have favoured us today.” Then, with a flourish, you reveal that your prediction matches the selected card. “The mystical power of Pythagoras has guided us to this moment,” you say with a hint of awe in your voice. “Who knows what other secrets and insights the spirits may have in store for us?” You end with a touch of humour: “Maybe they’ll even tell me the winning lottery numbers next week!”

Performance Tips & Additional Ideas

I like to take a humorous and somewhat silly approach to the script for this trick. While I want to highlight the supposed mystical origins of the “Pythagorean ritual”, I also want to make sure that my audience understands that this is all playful nonsense and that I am not claiming to possess any supernatural powers. The comedic element at the end of the routine helps to break the tension and remind everyone that it’s just a trick. This lighthearted approach is the way to go, but you might want to present the effect in a more serious manner if it better suits your personal performance style.

“Pythagorean Prediction” is ideally suited for the reduced thirty-three-card Piquet pack. The special setup means that the predicted card is automatically placed on the bottom of the pack, making it easy to glimpse. Additionally, the modified Piquet setup ensures that there are no cards with a value of ten in the deck, eliminating the possibility of all three face-up cards having a value of ten and providing a more random outcome. Using a regular Piquet pack could lead to a less random situation because almost half of the cards have a value of ten. This problem is less of an issue when using a full pack because the probability of dealing a face-up card with a value of ten is lower. While workarounds exist for this issue, such as allowing the participant to assign a new numerical value to a court card, the modified Piquet pack guarantees a satisfying outcome every time the trick is performed, as the highest card is an Eight.

If the Joker is revealed during the trick, it can actually enhance the overall effect as it adds an element of unpredictability. You can use this opportunity to engage your participant and ask them to assign any numerical value to the Joker, making the trick seem even more impossible. By reacting genuinely surprised when the Joker appears, you can further enhance the illusion of randomness, e.g. “Oh, I didn’t realise that there was a Joker in the pack. What value do you want to assign to it?”

An alternative method for glimpsing the prediction card is a delayed peeking subtlety that involves getting the spectator to control a known card to the bottom of the pack. Begin by shuffling the cards and, as you do so, glimpse the bottom card using a modified overhand shuffle. Here’s how: shuffle some of the cards in the usual way, then tilt the packet in your left hand so that it slopes the other way and drop some cards on the bottom of the pack. Then tilt the left-hand block back to its original position and drop a few cards on top. Continue this flip-flop action, alternating the replacement of cards until only a few remain in your right hand. As you go to place the last few cards on the bottom of the pack, glimpse the current bottom card. Then fake the second-to-last take of the shuffle by hitting the left-hand cards with those held in your right, but don’t release the cards as you usually would. Then, in one continuing action, tip the block of cards in your left hand and drop the right-hand cards on top of the pack.

To complete the false shuffle, overhand shuffle the cards, bringing the glimpsed card to the top of the pack. Then, hand the deck to a spectator and ask them to deal a few cards to the table, stopping whenever they like. Instruct them to shuffle and cut the cards before dealing more cards onto the table. Your helper should continue dealing and mixing the cards this way until no cards are left. This process subtly positions the known card on the bottom of the pile.

I like this method because it doesn’t require any overt peeking or suspicious moves, which helps to maintain the illusion of a fair and random selection process. The spectator feels fully in control of the selection and shuffling process, adding to the overall impact of the trick.

Instead of making a prediction, you can have your participant select any card, lose it in the pack, and control it to the bottom. First, have a card chosen and removed from the pack. Once your participant has memorised their card, ask them to push it back into the deck anywhere they wish, but stop them from pushing it in flush. You can do this by squeezing the deck. As you finish pushing the card into the pack, apply more pressure to the top left corner of the card, causing it to protrude slightly from the side of the pack. This will cause the card to become angle jogged. Next, push up on the protruding card with your left little finger, creating a break below it as you square up the pack.

Cut all the cards above the break to the table to control the selected card to the bottom of the pack. Then, cut approximately half of the remaining cards to the table, placing them on top of the pile you just cut. Finally, drop the remaining cards on top of the entire stack. This will ensure that the selected card ends up at the bottom of the pack, right where you need it to be, for the trick to be successful.

This technique lets you quickly and discreetly control the selected card to the bottom of the pack without your participant noticing. It also provides a sense of randomness and fairness, as the card is genuinely lost in the pack, and there is no way for you to predict which card will be selected. It also means there is no need for a written prediction, which allows you to perform the trick without needing pen and paper.

Afterthoughts

This is a puzzling trick and one of the best to perform with this modified Piquet pack. Even though the individual values of the cards appear to be important, they’re not. In addition, the specific handling (the deal-and-drop procedure) makes the maths more difficult to understand and, thus, the method more difficult to figure out.

This trick works particularly well as a follow-up to “Pinetti’s Prediction”, as it builds on the same theme of predicting a card. This adds to the overall effect and creates a sense of continuity between the two tricks. Moreover, the “Pythagorean Prediction” outcome is even more impressive, as you predict the name of the chosen card rather than just its position in the pack.

Also, by using the same Pythagorean-inspired presentation for both tricks, you can save time without the need to repeat yourself. This creates a smoother and more coherent routine, where the audience can follow along with the underlying theme of numerology (and the significance of the number ten). This thematic consistency adds to the overall impact of the performance, making it more memorable for your audience.