Order of the Phoenix photograph

This photograph of the original Order of the Phoenix was taken sometime near its founding in the 1970s. It displayed all of the members at that time, arranged into two rows. By 1995, the photo had become rather tattered and old-looking.

1970s
Sometime around its initial founding in the 1970s, the Order of the Phoenix had this group photo commissioned. Exactly who took it is uncertain, though as all known members were in the photo, it was presumably taken by a third-party photographer or a camera with a. It was apparently decided that Alastor Moody would be allowed possession of the finished photograph. He would hold on it for many years afterward, even after the original Order disbanded, to the point where it became temporarily lost among his possessions.

1995
On 30 August, 1995, Moody relocated this photograph after an uncertain time of it being lost during a survey of his possessions in hunt of his spare invisibility cloak. The next day, he took it with him to 12 Grimmauld Place for a small party that was being held there to celebrate the last day of the Hogwarts summer holidays and Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger's appointment as Prefects.

"He did not know why it had been such a shock; he had seen pictures of his parents before, after all, and he had met Wormtail but to have them sprung on him like that, when he was least expecting it... no one would like that, he thought angrily... And then, to see them surrounded by all those other happy faces.. Benjy Fenwick, who had been found in bits, and Gideon Prewett, who had died like a hero, and the Longbottoms, who had been tortured into madness... all waving happily out of the photograph forever more, not knowing that they were doomed... well, Moody might find that interesting... he, Harry, found it disturbing..."

- Harry Potter's internal monologue after seeing the photograph.

Thinking that Harry Potter might have some interest in seeing his parents in the photo, Moody took him aside when the party was winding down and showed it to him, explaining the various gruesome fates that had befallen many of the photograph's subjects in the years since it was taken. Rather than interest Harry, however, the photograph disturbed him; both seeing his parents in close proximity to the man that would betray them and seeing so many smiling faces coupled with descriptions of their demise put Harry off. He attempted to make up an object he had not yet packed in order to escape from Moody and avoid giving his opinion on the photo, and was allowed to leave when Sirius Black appeared and showed interest in seeing the photograph as well.

Members depicted

 * Front row
 * Alastor Moody
 * Albus Dumbledore
 * Dedalus Diggle
 * Marlene McKinnon
 * Frank and Alice Longbottom
 * Emmeline Vance
 * Remus Lupin
 * Benjy Fenwick
 * Middle row
 * Edgar Bones
 * Sturgis Podmore
 * Caradoc Dearborn
 * Rubeus Hagrid
 * Elphias Doge
 * Gideon Prewett
 * Back row
 * Aberforth Dumbledore
 * Dorcas Meadowes
 * Sirius Black
 * James Potter
 * Peter Pettigrew
 * Lily Evans

Behind the scenes

 * This photograph as seen in the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix bears several changes as opposed to the novel:
 * Rather than being showed it by Moody at the end of the summer holidays, Harry is shown it by Sirius during the Christmas holidays.
 * Harry seems to enjoy seeing the photo much more in the film than he did in the book.
 * The members of the Order are slightly different, fitting in only two rows, and appearing as follows:
 * Fabian and Gideon Prewett
 * Remus Lupin
 * Lily Evans
 * Peter Pettigrew
 * James Potter
 * Sirius Black
 * Rubeus Hagrid
 * Alice Longbottom
 * Frank Longbottom
 * Alastor Moody
 * Dorcas Meadowes
 * Marlene McKinnon
 * Elphias Doge
 * Emmeline Vance
 * Three other, unidentified men (possibly some of those from the novel's photograph)

Appearances

 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film)