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"A magic this powerful can do great harm in the wrong hands. It must be wielded by a select few."
Niamh Fitzgerald[src]
Ancient Magic

Ancient magic

Ancient magic was a very old, mysterious and powerful form of magic, the ways of which had been all but forgotten in the wizarding world by the late 19th century. Those who could perceive and had an affinity for wielding it were considered to have a unique and exceedingly rare ability. It was not widely known about or understood, even by Professors of Hogwarts.[1]

Description[]

Ancient magic HL

An attack using ancient magic

Ancient magic appeared in traces or "whispers", the colour of which depended on the nature of the magic,[2] to those with the ability to harness it. In addition to the distinct abilities they alone possessed, those with this gift could also access unique expressions of more ordinary magic[3], augmenting their spells with increased power and potency. Of the three known inherent wielders of ancient magic, they all began schooling at Hogwarts only in their fifth year, linking the ability with late-blooming.[3]

Xenophilius Lovegood believed that love was a great blessing bestowed upon the world by the practitioners of ancient magic.[4]

History[]

Hogwarts in winter HL

Hogwarts Castle, a stronghold of ancient magic

Hogwarts Castle was said to have been built by and was itself a stronghold of ancient magic, defended by countless ancient protective enchantments.[5][6]

In Tudor times, Percival Rackham and Isidora Morganach both had the unique ability to harness ancient magic. When Isidora was a young girl, she saw Percival use ancient magic to transform her hamlet into fertile land with the Keepers. They both started Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in their fifth year. Isidora eventually became a Professor, but went at odds with the Keepers when she used an ancient magic pain extraction spell to 'heal' Hogwarts students of their pain, which she stored in the final repository.[3]

In 1783, Flannery, who was on a murderous rampage, supposedly used an "ancient spell" to track down the location of his murder victim, Hamish Steed, despite Steed being under Ministry protection.[7]

By the 19th century, ancient magic had seemingly disappeared. Miriam Fig's research into why this had occurred eventually led to her mysterious death.[8] Miriam's husband, Eleazar Fig, later discovered a student at Hogwarts who had the ability to harness ancient magic. At the time, the goblin Ranrok had also discovered the existence of ancient magic. He attempted to harness it in order to destroy wizardkind,[1] culminating in the battle for the final repository.[3]

Lily Potter murdered

The death of Lily Potter, invoking sacrifical protection

In 1981, Lily Potter sacrificed her life to save her son, Harry, from being murdered by Lord Voldemort. The subsequent sacrificial protection unwittingly put on Harry, shielding him from harm, was a form of ancient magic.[9] Both Albus Dumbledore and Voldemort were aware of this ancient magic, and Voldemort was known to "despise" it.[9] indeed, Dumbledore was able to willingly invoke a form of ancient magic, a bond of blood charm, to protect Harry Potter so long as he was in the Dursley family's care.[10]

In 1994, Harry Potter discovered from a book in the Hogwarts Library that the impervious hides of dragons were imbued with ancient magic as he prepared for the first task of the 1994–1995 Triwizard Tournament.[11]

On 2 May 1998, Harry Potter sacrificed his life by accepting Voldemort's Killing Curse in order to confer sacrifical protection on the countless Hogwartians in the Battle of Hogwarts,[12] just as Harry's mother had done for him.

Practitioners of ancient magic[]

Some had the rare ability to perceive traces of ancient magic upon objects or surfaces and, if they possessed this gift, could interact with those traces appropriately.[3] For others, it was possible for certain ancient spells and charms to be learned, (provided the witch or wizard was talented enough to fully understand its complex faculties) [9][10] or even involuntarily exercised under rare circumstances.[9]

The following is a list of all individuals who were known to perform ancient magic at some point in their lives:

Name Notes
Architect of Hogwarts Hogwarts Castle was built with ancient magic.[13]
Hogwarts founders (possibly)
Percival Rackham A late-bloomer, his inherent ability to perceive and use ancient magic appeared when he was fifteen years old and entered Hogwarts in his fifth year. He later became the Professor of Divination at Hogwarts and one of the Keepers.[3]
Isidora Morganach Like Percival, she was a late-bloomer with the ability to see and use ancient magic, and started Hogwarts in her fifth year. She attempted to use her skill to extract pain from people as a form of well-meaning, but ultimately misguided healing magic, and was eventually killed by San Bakar, one of the Keepers, to avoid damage to Hogwarts students.[3]
Flannery (possibly) Flannery supposedly used an "ancient spell" in 1783 to track down the location of his murder victim, Hamish Steed, despite Steed being under Ministry protection.[7]
Unidentified 19th-century Hogwarts student This student's magical ability also developed late, similarly to Rackham and Morganach, and they started Hogwarts in their fifth year. They used their powers to protect the final repository from Ranrok.[3]
Ranrok After breaking the final repository and seizing the corrupted ancient magic held within, he used it to transfigure himself into a dragon, and briefly had near-invincible power.
Albus Dumbledore He used a Bond of blood charm to protect Harry Potter in 1981, a form of complex ancient magic.[10] He was also able to interface with the many enchantments and protections found around Hogwarts, though some of these he may have placed himself and could not all be considered ancient magic. During the 1996–1997 school year, he was able to quickly modify the castle's protection against broomsticks even while under great pain, and he alone had the ability to Apparate within Hogwarts. Although Dumbledore did not start Hogwarts late and had no particular affinity for ancient magic, he was able to learn some of these skills, being an otherwise extraordinarily talented wizard.
Lily J. Potter Her willing death at the hands of Lord Voldemort during the attack at Godric's Hollow in 1981 bestowed sacrificial protection upon her son, Harry, shielding him from harm.[9]
Harry Potter Like his mother, he sacrificed himself during the Battle of Hogwarts, invoking the same form of sacrificial protection on the students, staff, and defenders of Hogwarts.[12]

Behind the scenes[]

Appearances[]

Notes and references[]

External links[]

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