Chamber of Secrets


 * This article is about the physical Chamber of Secrets. For the book, see Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.

The Chamber of Secrets, which is deep under the lake, was home to an ancient basilisk, intended to be used to purge the school of Muggle-born students. The Chamber is entered by saying "open up" in Parseltongue to a sink engraved with a snake figure on the tap in the girl's second floor bathroom where Moaning Myrtle could often be found. Doing this would make the sink move, revealing a pipe leading to an underground passage, its floor covered in the bones of small animals and the skin of a basilisk. The Chamber is lined with monumental statues of snakes, and a colossal statue of Salazar Slytherin is at the centre.

When Harry, Ron, and Professor Lockhart enter the Chamber during the spring of Harry's second year (1993), Harry finds Ginny Weasley in the Chamber. The 16-year-old spirit of Tom Riddle, brought to life by his diary, sends the basilisk after Harry. With the help of Fawkes and the sword of Gryffindor, Harry defeats the basilisk and destroys the diary. Ginny then wakes up and Harry leads her back to Ron and Lockhart. Fawkes then comes and flies them back up the pipe.