Peverell was the surname of a medieval pure-blood wizarding family. Hermione reported in early 1998 that, according to Nature's Nobility: A Wizarding Genealogy, the Peverell name was among the first to "become extinct in the male line," meaning that the name had died out among wizarding families. Nevertheless, Marvolo Gaunt claimed Peverell blood through the female line, and had a ring with what he claims is the Peverell crest, which actually was the sign of the Deathly Hallows. This ring was set with the Stone of Resurrection, and later became one of Voldemort's Horcruxes .
According to Harry's near-death vision of Dumbledore, Harry too is a descendant of the Peverell line through his father James Potter, and hence Ignotus' cloak is rightfully his.
The Peverell brothers, Antioch, Cadmus, and Ignotus, are believed by some to be the subjects of the wizarding legend, "The Tale of the Three Brothers."
Each possessed one of the Deathly Hallows:
- Antioch: the Elder Wand
- Cadmus: the Resurrection Stone
- Ignotus: the Cloak of Invisibility
According to legend, Antioch's throat was slit in his sleep the night after winning his first duel with the Elder Wand. He had boasted of its power, and someone coveted the wand enough to kill him for it. It is unknown if Antioch was really murdered, though given the Elder Wand's violent history it seems likely, or if he had any descendants.
The legend also says that Cadmus committed suicide after using the Resurrection Stone to bring back his beloved (who had died an untimely death), having found the experience completely unfulfilling. Not only was Cadmus's beloved an echo of herself in life (q.v. Harry's parents as they appeared to him during his duel with Voldemort in the spring of 1995 at the Little Hangleton graveyard), she found the world of the living uncomfortable and wished to return to the afterlife. However given the Gaunts appear to be descended from Cadmus, as they possessed the Stone, it would seem Cadmus lived long enough to at the very least sire children.
Apparently, Ignotus lived a long and fulfilling life, and, having decided to elude Death no longer, passed the cloak on to his own son. He joined Death and welcomed him as a brother. His linage is the easiest of the brothers' to trace, as the cloak would continue to be handed down from parent to child through the generations finally coming into Harry's possession.
Hermione located and showed to Harry the grave of Ignotus at the graveyard in Godric's Hollow on Christmas Eve, 1997. She recognized the family crest engraved on the headstone as the symbol worn by Xenophilius Lovegood at the wedding of Bill Weasley and Fleur Delacour the previous summer. After Ron rejoined them, they visited Xenophilius and questioned him about the symbol, which he said was the emblem of the Deathly Hallows.
Etymology
The name Peverell may come from William Peverell who was a commander in the Battle of Hastings in 1066.
Family Tree
Peverell family
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Ignotus Peverell Antioch Peverell Cadmus Peverell Slytherin family
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(many generations) (many generations) (many generations)
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Potter family ------------------------------
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James Potter + Lily Evans Gaunt family
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Harry Potter + Ginny Weasley Marvolo Gaunt
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James Sirius Potter Albus Severus Potter Lily Luna Potter Morfin Gaunt Merope Gaunt + Tom Riddle Sr.
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Lord Voldemort