The Elder Wand

The Elder Wand was one of three magical objects that made up the fabled Deathly Hallows, along with the Resurrection Stone and the Cloak of Invisibility. According to The Tale of the Three Brothers, it was the first Hallow created, supposedly made by Death himself. It was bestowed upon Antioch Peverell after he requested, as his bounty, a wand worthy of someone who had outsmarted Death. According to legend, whoever united the wand with the other two Hallows (the Resurrection Stone and the Cloak of Invisibility) would become the Master of Death.
It was said to have been the most powerful wand ever to exist, able to perform feats of magic that would normally be impossible even for the most skilled wizards, such as mending another wand damaged beyond normal magical repair. The Elder Wand's core was the tail hair of a Thestral, a potent yet tricky substance to master; only a witch or wizard who was capable of accepting death could do so.JK on Thestral tail hair
==Description==
The wand was made of elder wood, was 15 inchesAlbus Dumbledore Fact file at (via the Internet Archive) and contained a Thestral tail hair core. - Explore the Story - Albus Dumlboredore This type of wood that contained powerful magic was the rarest of all wand woods, but was said to be deeply unlucky and trickier than any other to master. Only a highly unusual person who was the superior of their company would find their perfect match with this wood. The Thestral core was "a tricky substance that only wizards that mastered death can control"."The Elder Wand" at J. K. Rowling's Official Site
Despite its legendary reputation and immense ability, the Elder Wand was an unassuming object. Appearing at face value to be a wand like any other, it had a smooth, unadorned shaft and a handle formed from two conjoined spheres.
The Elder Wand gave its loyalty to whoever could win it from its previous master. Most people believed that meant one had to kill the Elder Wand's master, but this was not actually the case. One simply had to disarm the master of the Wand, either by knocking it out of their hand with a spell or simply grabbing it out of their hand. It did not have to be the Elder Wand that the master was disarmed of for its loyalty to change, the change in loyalty also happened if the master was disarmed of their own wand, as long as they were disarmed and even if they did not have the Elder Wand with them at the time. Normally, a wand still had a connection to its original master, even when its loyalty changed, but this was not the case with the Elder Wand, its change of loyalty was complete and total.
==History==
===Mythic origins of the Elder Wand===
According to The Tale of the Three Brothers, three brothers — suspected to be Antioch, Cadmus, and Ignotus Peverell — were out travelling when they came to a treacherous river that had been known to claim the lives of many that had attempted to cross it. Taking no chances, the three brothers pulled out their wands and conjured a bridge out of thin air. However, halfway across it, they encountered a tall, hooded figure blocking their path. It was Death himself, dressed in a simple long black cloak. Death felt cheated that the three brothers had outsmarted him and had not drowned in the river, as many others had.
While pretending to congratulate them for their triumph, Death schemed against them. He offered each brother their choice of gift as a reward for outsmarting him. Antioch, the eldest, went first, and being a combative man he asked for a wand that would defeat all others. Death went to a nearby elder tree and created a wand from its wood, which he handed to the eldest brother. The second brother, Cadmus, who wanted to humiliate Death even further, asked for an object that would recall the dead and was given the Resurrection Stone. The youngest brother, Ignotus, was much wiser than his brothers and was sceptical of Death's intentions. He asked for an object that would allow him to live his life without the fear of Death following him. Reluctantly, Death handed over his own Cloak of Invisibility.
===Antioch Peverell's possession===
Albus Dumbledore thought it was unlikely that the Elder Wand was actually made by Death, and assumed that it may have been created by the eldest of the three Peverell brothers, Antioch. However, Antioch did not possess the Elder Wand for very long: After killing a rival wizard in a duel shortly after creating the wand, Antioch drunkenly boasted of the wand's powers. He was murdered in his sleep that night by another envious wizard who slit his throat and took possession of the wand.
===Known owners===
Over time, this powerful and mysterious wand passed through various hands, usually by violent means, and acquired names such as "the Deathstick" and "the Wand of Destiny". Several of the wand's owners are well-known to wizarding history, as the "bloody trail" wrought by the wand was recorded in numerous historical accounts.Some of its early owners were Emeric the Evil, Egbert the Egregious, Godelot, Hereward, Barnabas Deverill, and Loxias. Either Arcus or Livius may have taken it from Loxias, but Dumbledore claims no one really knows and quipped that it could have been Loxias's own mother. Many owners were killed by their successors in a lust for power, and over time the inaccurate legend grew that murder was necessary in order to attain mastery of the Elder Wand.
====Recent History====
====Albus Dumbledore's possession====
When Albus Dumbledore defeated Grindelwald in 1945, mastery of the Elder Wand passed to him. Under his ownership, the wand was largely used for good, unlike many of its former masters. Dumbledore performed great magic with this wand, furthering his reputation as the world's most powerful wizard. Among that magic was the ability to produce Gubraithian Fire, a flame which has been enchanted to burn forever without dying. It is quite an advanced piece of magic, as few wizards were capable of it. Dumbledore provided Rubeus Hagrid with a branch of this fire as a diplomatic gift for the giants.
When they returned to Hogsmeade, Madam Rosmerta informed them that the Dark Mark had been conjured over the Astronomy Tower. In the tower, Dumbledore told Harry not to interfere in the events that were about to take place there, and, to ensure this, placed him in a Body-Bind Curse under his invisibility cloak. Hidden, Harry was unable to intervene as Dumbledore (now extremely weakened by the potion) was Disarmed by Draco Malfoy. The wand flew from Dumbledore's hands over the battlements, but was clearly found later, as it was placed in Dumbledore's grave alongside his corpse.
Dumbledore was conversing with Draco about the plot to assassinate him when several other Death Eaters entered the tower and tried to persuade Draco to finish his task as well as Dumbledore. The present Death Eaters included Thorfinn Rowle, Corban Yaxley, Gibbon, Amycus Carrow, Alecto Carrow and Fenrir Greyback. Dumbledore briefly exchanged words with Bellatrix and Grayback. When Draco hesitated, Severus Snape appeared and performed the Killing Curse on Dumbledore himself. Harry learned that, in order to save himself from a more agonising death, and to prevent Draco from tarnishing his soul, Dumbledore had instructed Snape to kill him, of which Snape himself had reluctantly agreed to.
Unbeknownst to Snape, Dumbledore had also done this to ensure that when Snape killed him, Dumbledore would not unintentionally be "defeated" (as they had agreed to it beforehand, the Elder Wand's power will end with Dumbledore, who was ready to accept death) and thus the mastery of the Elder Wand would disappear. However, not all went according to Dumbledore's plan, since Dumbledore was disarmed and thus was defeated by Draco Malfoy. Without his knowledge, Malfoy thus became the next master of the Elder Wand.
====Lord Voldemort's search====
250px|thumb|right|Voldemort interrogating Grindelwald at Nurmengard about the Elder Wand, moments before murdering him 
During the summer of 1997, Voldemort held a meeting at Malfoy Manor with his Death Eaters, in which he revealed that, in order to defeat Harry, he would need to borrow another person's wand because of the connection that his own wand shared with Harry's. He finally settled on Lucius Malfoy's wand as a way of punishing the Malfoy family, but that wand was destroyed by Harry's during the Battle of the Seven Potters. After this, a furious Voldemort tortured Garrick Ollivander into revealing more solutions to defeat Harry, eventually leading Voldemort to know of the Elder Wand's existence. Although originally desiring another wand only to defeat Potter, upon hearing the wand's legendary powers he sought its mastery in order to not only to conquer Harry Potter, but also to secure his desire as the ultimate wizard in the world, which he believed would make him invincible.
He devoted the latter half of 1997 (and into the spring of 1998) into a relentless and murderous search for the Elder Wand. He killed many people who stood in his way, including an innocent Muggle woman and her two small children. He eventually traced the wand's recent history, murdering both Gregorovitch and Grindelwald in the course of his search. It was after breaking into Grindelwald's cell in Nurmengard that Voldemort tracked the wand's ownership to Dumbledore, despite Grindelwald's efforts.
====Lord Voldemort's possession====
Voldemort broke into Dumbledore's grave and robbed it of the wand, which had been buried with its former master. However, unbeknownst to Voldemort, the former owner of the Elder Wand, Albus Dumbledore, had been disarmed by young Draco Malfoy. He believed that Severus Snape was the true owner of the wand after he realised the wand was not living up to its full potential, as Voldemort thought that Snape had been the one to kill Dumbledore, not taking into account the fact that Draco had disarmed Dumbledore before Snape killed him. As a result, Voldemort got his pet snake and Horcrux Nagini, to murder Snape. He believed he was now the Elder Wand's true master, but in the Battle of Hogwarts, Harry Potter, his young adversary, revealed to Voldemort that the wand had not belonged to Snape, but to Draco, and, after defeating Draco himself, Harry Potter.
====Harry Potter's possession====
Nearly a year after Draco had unintentionally become the wand's master, Harry Potter had taken Draco's wand by force during the Skirmish at Malfoy Manor, thus making him the new and final master of the Elder Wand. Late in the Battle of Hogwarts, Harry, who had learned that he had been accidentally made into Voldemort's Horcrux when he was a year old, walked into the Forbidden Forest to sacrifice himself to Lord Voldemort. Voldemort cast a Killing Curse on Harry using the Elder Wand. The wand seemingly worked because Harry intended to die at Voldemort's hand, much as Dumbledore had planned his death with Snape. Harry had entered a limbo state, portrayed as King's Cross Station, from which he could choose to return. When he did return, Voldemort cast the Cruciatus Curse on Harry's "dead" body but caused no pain. At this point, Harry realised that he was, in fact, the master of the Elder Wand.
Only in his final encounter with Harry at the Battle of Hogwarts was Voldemort told that he had failed to win the true allegiance of the wand, as he did not gain ownership by defeating its previous owner. Despite this, Voldemort used the Elder Wand to cast his final Killing Curse against Harry's Disarming Charm. However, because the wand's allegiance was to Harry, Voldemort's spell backfired and killed him, once and for all.
====Harry's decision====
With Voldemort defeated, and Harry now the true and final master and possessor of the Elder Wand, he used it to repair his damaged original wand of holly and phoenix feather, which he said he was "happier with". After the repair, Harry told Dumbledore's portrait that he would place the Elder Wand back in Dumbledore's tomb, and when Harry died a natural death, the wand's power would be broken as Dumbledore had intended. The portrait of Professor Dumbledore approved.
====Delphini====
After using a Time-Turner to go back to 31 October 1981, the night of Lily and James Potter's murder by her father Tom Riddle, Delphini engaged in a duel with Harry Potter. During the duel she disarmed Harry, and later on, Hermione bound Delphini. It is unknown if these actions had any effect on the allegiance or ownership of the Elder Wand.
==Known masters of the Elder Wand==
*Albus Dumbledore
*Draco Malfoy
*Harry Potter
*Hermione Granger During the duel in the Church, Hermione used Brachiabindo to restrain Delphini, which may have transferred the Elder Wand's allegiance, although Ron, Ginny, Draco, and Hermione all helped subdue her previously.
==Power==
The Elder Wand was the most powerful wand in existence. Its owner could have used it to cast spells more powerful than any believed to be magically possible. For example, Harry Potter was able to repair his regular Phoenix feather wand using the Elder Wand in 1998, even though broken wands were held, by experts such as Garrick Ollivander, to be damaged beyond magical repair, and Harry did so despite not having any training in wandlore. Additionally, when Grindelwald used the Cruciatus Curse on Jacob Kowalski in Bhutan in 1932, the effects of the spell continued to affect Jacob even after he stopped pointing the wand at him. Conversely, when Voldemort used his own regular wand to use the Cruciatus Curse on Harry Potter in Little Hangleton, the effects of the spell ceased the instant Voldemort stopped pointing his wand at him. Both Ollivander and Voldemort believed that the wand's legendary powers is the only one capable of overpowering the bond between the latter and Harry, which created such an effect that Harry managed to overcome Voldemort's attempt to kill him.
However, there does exist limitations in the Elder Wand's power, appearing to merely able to improve pre-existing spells to perform the seemingly impossible but not actually able to perform the impossible. Dumbledore himself was incapable of curing the petrified victims of Salazar Slytherin's Basilisk or nullifying the curse on Marvolo Gaunt's ring entirely, and neither was he able to overcome the enchantments upon Voldemort's Drink of Despair with the wand amplifying his own magic. In addition, while most of the times where the Elder Wand shifted allegiance was not in a fair fight but by cunning assassination, it does not entirely guarantee victory against others, as displayed by Dumbledore's ability to defeat Gellert Grindelwald despite him having mastered the Elder Wand, while Egbert the Egregious was known for having actually defeated Emeric the Evil in a duel to claim the wand. This can be attributable, however, to the fact that in these circumstances, the proper counter-charms or counter-potions weren't known to the master of the Elder Wand at the time. Moreover, not all spells have a counter-spell, but instead, a counter-potion. These scenarios are comparable to when Neville in his first few years studying at Hogwarts was cursed by Draco Malfoy many times, such as being bounded by the Leg-Locker Curse, which only Hermione in their year, was able to undo the effects of. Neville himself was unable to undo the Leg-Locker Curse's effects on him, but Hermione was, highlighting the fact that knowledge of the curse, its effects, and counter-curses or counter-potions are important in removing the effects of curses and other dark magic.While it is stated that a wand will not give up its master so easily if it is attempted to be won, the Elder Wand seems to do this time and time again. However, this might not be referring to its willingness to give up its master, but rather to the amount of effort it took to defeat the wielder of the Wand. As the wand, like the eldest brother in the Tale, embodied the conceit that "Might is Right", greater power would, from its perspective, indicate superiority. Ron has noted that he would choose the wand of the three Hallows, but argued that he would do so while not proclaiming his ownership of it, reasoning that the wand was only dangerous to the first brother because he bragged about owning it rather than the wand being dangerous on its own.When Lord Voldemort used the Elder Wand without mastering it he claimed that the wand only unleashed his regular (albeit immensely powerful) level of magic and not the unbeatable effects it was rumoured to possess. It's unknown if the wand would work this way for another who hasn't mastered it though, as Voldemort has used the wands of others in the past with no handicap, it's likely that this is his own power rather than that of the Elder Wand.It did have one redeeming quality like all other wands, however: it refused to harm or kill its master nor those under sacrificial protection.
==Symbolism==
In the Deathly Hallows symbol, the Elder Wand was shown as the vertical line that went right through the middle of the circle and the triangle; it represented the aspects of power and invincibility of the Hallows as a whole, the tent pole, as it were, of the entire edifice.
==Other elder wands==
While the "Elder Wand" (capitalised) referred to one of the Deathly Hallows, other wands had been made from elder wood, such as Lottie Turner's wand. In general wizards seemed to eschew elder wands, due at least in part to the sordid history of the Elder Wand itself, favouring wands made from various other woods, such as holly, willow, vine, and oak. Ron repeated an old wizarding saying, "Wand of elder, never prosper" after Hermione read The Tale of the Three Brothers, to illustrate how wizarding lore might be passed from generation to generation.
==See also==
*Peverell family
*Deathly Hallows
*Cloak of Invisibility
*Resurrection Stone
*The Tale of the Three Brothers
==Behind the scenes==
*At the end of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film), the Elder Wand is seen lying on the headmaster's desk, instead of being buried in the White Tomb. This scene must take place before Dumbledore's burial (which isn't seen on film), given that in the next film adaptation, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1, the wand is buried with its former master.
*In the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Albus Dumbledore claimed he would make it easy for Draco Malfoy and allowed Malfoy to disarm him, though he could have defended himself. Therefore it seems as though he wanted Malfoy to have the Wand; however, it should be noted that the Elder Wand was said to only switch allegiance if it was removed from its master against his will. However, it's possible that Dumbledore truly hadn't expected Draco to attack him, even if only to disarm him, and was therefore genuinely caught off guard. Also, because he was in a very weak and slow state from drinking the Potion, it's likely that he was just too slow and weak to defend himself.
*If Dumbledore had managed to keep his wand and not be disarmed by Draco Malfoy, then he would have presumably been disarmed by one of the Death Eaters before Snape came, if they saw him. However, they didn't attack him directly, as they knew that Draco needed to kill him, so it's possible that Dumbledore could have kept his wand. It's unknown how Severus Snape would have reacted if he had seen Dumbledore with the wand, but most likely, given the ravaging effects of the curse which Dumbledore was already suffering, he would have killed him anyway.
*It's unknown what would have happened to the Elder Wand if Dumbledore had been killed by the Inferi in the Horcrux Cave. It might be that its loyalty would have passed to their master, as Voldemort seemed to believe would be the case when he instructed Nagini to kill Snape.
*Albus Dumbledore and Egbert the Egregious are the only known wizards to have defeated a master of the Elder Wand (Gellert Grindelwald and Emeric the Evil, respectively) in a wizarding duel. Other masters of the Elder Wand obtained mastery through deceit, stealth (as when Grindelwald stole it from Gregorovitch), foul play (the murder of Antioch Peverell in his sleep), happenstance (as when Draco Malfoy disarmed Albus Dumbledore, who was concurrently casting a Full Body-Bind Curse on Harry Potter) or beating the current master while he doesn't physically possess the wand (as in Harry Potter's disarming of Draco Malfoy). This is another testament to Dumbledore's innate magical skills, which he references to Harry when the latter is in limbo by admitting that although both he and Grindelwald were near evenly matched, he was a shade more skilful. The Elder Wand, therefore, bears a certain resemblance to the One Ring in J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings", as an instigator of murder and mayhem.
*In the film adaptation for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Parts 1 and 2, it seems that the Elder Wand has a much darker colour; this may be a change the film makers employed to make the wand fit better with Voldemort's "dark and evil" personality.
*The curse that killed Lord Voldemort came from the Elder Wand. As Voldemort thought that Snape was the master, Voldemort killed him. Draco, however, was the true master, as he had disarmed Dumbledore, and then Harry disarmed Draco. So, when Voldemort tried to kill Harry, the Wand wouldn't harm its master, and so turned the spell back on Voldemort. Although this does make one wonder why it didn't backfire on Voldemort in the Forbidden Forest, as Harry was already the master of the Elder Wand by then. Perhaps it was because Nagini, a Horcrux, was still alive, or it may have been because Harry intended to die, much as Dumbledore did when facing Snape in the Astronomy Tower. Alternatively, it may have been that, since Harry didn't fight back, he couldn't be defeated. Alternatively, it's possible that the curse did indeed backfire because it destroyed the piece of Voldemort's soul that was in Harry's forehead.
*In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2, when Voldemort tries to unleash the Elder Wand's capabilities upon the shield surrounding Hogwarts, he seems to feel a slight pain in his arm carrying the wand, similar to the effects of the Horcrux being destroyed. The wand as well cracks under the strain.
*In Part 2 of the film adaptation, Harry simply destroys the Elder Wand by snapping it in half and throws it away as opposed to the seventh book where he repairs his original one. This is justified as the Elder Wand was too dangerous to fall into the wrong hands again.
*When asked which of the Deathly Hallows they preferred, Hermione Granger chose the Cloak of Invisibility, while Ron chose the Elder Wand, and Harry chose the Resurrection Stone.Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (film) - An Chapter 021
*In a interview with Melissa Anelli in the enhanced edition of Harry a History Rowling said that she and her American editor Arthur had an interesting conversation during the editing of book seven - the moment when Harry takes Draco's wand: "Arthur said, God, that's the moment when the ownership of the Elder wand is actually transferred? And I said, that's right. He said, shouldn't that be a bit more dramatic? And I said, no, not at all, the reverse. I said to Arthur, I think it really puts the elaborate, grandiose plans of Dumbledore and Voldemort in their place. That actually the history of the wizarding world hinged on two teenage boys wrestling with each other. They weren't even using magic. It became an ugly little corner tussle for the possession of wands. And I really liked that - that very human moment, as opposed to these two wizards who were twitching strings and manipulating and implanting information and husbanding information and guarding information, you know? Ultimately it just came down to that, a little scuffle and fistfight in the corner and pulling a wand away."http://www.snitchseeker.com/harry-potter-news/j-k-rowling-explains-grindelwald-and-dumbledores-relationship-dracos-wand-transfer-71142/
*It's mentioned in Dumbledore's (not entirely honest) commentary that rumours of an unbeatable wand are preposterous. For example, Grindelwald had mastered the "unbeatable" Deathstick, and yet was still defeated by Dumbledore in 1945. However, it's more probable that only one who has mastered the wand by becoming a Master of Death (which is required to truly unlock the wand's full power) will be unbeatable with it.
===Author's comments===
J. K. Rowling has discussed how the Elder Wand behaves slightly different from other wands in its loyalty:
:"The Elder Wand is simply the most ruthless of wands in that it will only take into consideration strength. One would expect a certain amount of loyalty from one's wand. So even if you were disarmed while carrying it, even if you lost a fight while carrying it, it has developed an affinity with you that it won't give up easily. If, however, a wand is won, properly won in an adult duel, then a wand may switch allegiance ... However, the Elder Wand knows no loyalty except to strength. It's completely unsentimental. It will only go where the power is. So if you win, then you've won the wand. You don't need to kill with it. But ... almost inevitably, it attracts wizards who are prepared to kill and who will kill. And also it attracts wizards like Voldemort who confuse being prepared to murder with strength."24 December 2007 PotterCast Interviews with J.K. Rowling
:"The secret of the elder wand is that it's more sentient than any other. It can identify the caster of any spell that touches it and keeps tally of which wizard has beaten which, giving its allegiance to the one it judges the victor. Physical possession is irrelevant."Twitter
==Appearances==
*Harry Potter and the Goblet Of Fire (film) 
*Harry Potter and the Order Of-The Phoenix (film)
*Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film)
*Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1 
*Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 
==Notes and references==
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