Harry Potter's wand

**"Point me!"**
This article is about **Harry Potter's first and main wand**. You may be looking for **one of the other wands he acquired in his travels**.

## Historical information

### Owner(s)

* Harry Potter
* Tom Riddle's soul (very briefly)
* Barty Crouch Jnr (very briefly)
* Draco Malfoy (very briefly)

## Material information

### Characteristics

Nice and supple, brother of Voldemort's wand

Harry Potter's wand was 11" long, made of holly, and possessed a phoenix feather core. This was described by Garrick Ollivander to be an unusual combination of wand core and wood. The feather was donated by Fawkes, Albus Dumbledore's phoenix.

It was revealed by Garrick Ollivander that Tom Riddle's wand core also came from Fawkes, making the two wands "brothers". Harry's wand was described as being "*nice and supple*".

Harry's wand was broken in 1997, but was repaired by him after the 1998 Battle of Hogwarts. Usually the repair of a wand is impossible, but with the use of the Elder Wand it was achievable. It can be assumed that Harry continued to use his wand after this, as he was incredibly fond of it.

## History

### Purchase

"*The wand chooses the wizard. That much has always been clear to those of us who have studied wandlore... These connections are complex. An initial attraction, and then a mutual quest for experience, the wand learning from the wizard, the wizard from the wand.*"
— Ollivander explaining wands' connections to wizards[src]

Harry obtained his wand from Ollivander, at a price of seven Galleons, just before his first year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. He had tried out many other wands first with little success, but felt a warm feeling upon being handed the holly wand. Despite his wand being brothers with Lord Voldemort's wand, noted by Ollivander after Harry's wand had been chosen, Harry generally did not put much thought into this connection at first, regarding the relationship as something that the wand could not help, any more than he could help being related to his aunt Petunia Dursley.

### Use at Hogwarts

"*...there's no point pretending that you're not good at Defence Against the Dark Arts, because you are. You were the only person last year who could throw off the Imperius Curse completely, you can produce a Patronus, you can do all sorts of stuff that full-grown wizards can't, Viktor always said... Harry knew how to do stuff even he didn't, and he was in the final year at Durmstrang.*"
— Hermione Granger regarding Harry's magical abilities[src]

Harry wielded this wand throughout his Hogwarts career and demonstrated his growing magical skill, particularly in Defence Against the Dark Arts and duelling. Harry has also performed powerful magic with this wand, such as the very advanced Patronus Charm (at age thirteen), an impressive Shield Charm, and many other advanced spells he had to learn at a young age.

#### Stolen

When Harry entered the Chamber of Secrets and confronted a fragment of Lord Voldemort's soul via his diary Horcrux, the manifested soul took the wand that Harry dropped when he rushed to an unconscious Ginny Weasley, and used it to write his full name in fiery letters and then reorganised them into the phrase "I am Lord Voldemort". Harry reclaimed the wand once he destroyed the diary.

Harry attended the Quidditch World Cup with the Weasley family and Hermione Granger. During this time, Barty Crouch Jnr managed to fight off his father's Imperius Curse long enough to take Harry's wand and cast the Dark Mark into the sky with it. This caused some Ministry of Magic officials to be suspicious of Harry, after it was discovered, upon using *Prior Incantato,* that his wand had cast *Morsmordre* (the spell that conjures the Dark Mark). Winky, the house-elf in charge of keeping young Barty, was found with the wand and was accused by Amos Diggory of being the one who cast the spell. Once the wand told all it could of the crime scene, it was returned to Harry.

#### Brother wands

Sirius Black: "*The wands connected? Why?*"
Albus Dumbledore: "*Priori Incantatem.*"
Sirius Black: "*The Reverse Spell effect?*"
Albus Dumbledore: "*Exactly, Harry’s wand and Voldemort’s wand share cores. Each of them contains a feather from the tail of the same phoenix.* This *phoenix, in fact,*"
— Discussing of wands with twin cores[src]
When Lord Voldemort returned and forced Harry to duel him in the Little Hangleton graveyard, the rare magical effect of *Priori Incantatem* was triggered. Their wands recognised each other as "brothers" and refused to attack one another.

A battle of wills began, and Harry's wand forced Voldemort's to regurgitate its spells, resulting in the emergence of the spirits of: Harry's parents, Bertha Jorkins, Frank Bryce, and the recently murdered Cedric Diggory. After Harry broke off the connection, they lingered for a while to hinder Lord Voldemort and the Death Eaters. This gave Harry enough time to escape.

### Weapon of "The Chosen One"

"*I believe that your wand imbibed some of the power and qualities of Voldemort’s wand that night, which is to say that it contained a little of Voldemort himself. So your wand recognised him when he pursued you, recognised a man who was both kin and mortal enemy, and regurgitated some of his own magic against him. Your wand now contained the power of your enormous courage and of Voldemort's own deadly skill.*"
— Harry's wand's reaction to Lord Voldemort[src]

In the aftermath of the Triwizard Tournament and Voldemort's return, Harry possessed magical knowledge and experience that could be said to significantly exceed that of his fellow students. He was forced to essentially learn a variety of advanced spells to hold his own during the competition, as he was going up against much older students and facing dangerous tasks. He wielded this wand in many epic conflicts such as that at the Battle of the Department of Mysteries, against the Inferi in the Horcrux Cave and during the Battle of the Astronomy Tower.

When the Order of the Phoenix evacuated Harry from 4 Privet Drive, they were ambushed by over thirty Death Eaters and Lord Voldemort himself. When Lord Voldemort attacked Harry, Harry's wand recognised him as an enemy, despite the fact he was using Lucius Malfoy's wand instead of his own, in order to avoid causing the reverse-spell effect. Harry's wand shot "*a spurt of golden fire*" at Voldemort, destroying Lucius's wand and allowing Harry and Rubeus Hagrid to escape to safety.

Dumbledore theorised that this event, which Ollivander himself described as "*unique*", was the result of Harry's wand having absorbed a portion of Voldemort's extensive magical skill during their duel in the Little Hangleton graveyard which it regurgitated upon their encounter.

#### Damage

*Main article: Attack at Godric's Hollow (1997)*
Hermione Granger: "*You're still really angry at me, aren't you?*"
Harry Potter: "*No. No, Hermione, I know it was an accident. You were trying to get us out of there alive, and you were incredible. I'd be dead if you hadn't been there to help me.*"
— Conversation after Hermione accidentally broke Harry's wand[src]
On Christmas Eve of that year, Harry and Hermione ventured to Godric's Hollow during their search for Lord Voldemort’s Horcruxes, hoping to speak to Bathilda Bagshot. Voldemort had foreseen Harry's intentions, and had planted his snake Nagini in Bathilda's corpse beforehand. As soon as she had Harry alone, Nagini attacked him. Hermione raced to his defence, using a Blasting Curse to repel the snake. The curse ricocheted, damaging Harry's wand. Harry asked Hermione to repair it afterwards, but it was too badly damaged, that after two failed attempts at some simple spells it fell apart again. Harry was very upset at the loss of his wand, though he was not angry with Hermione, recognising that she had saved his life. Despite its destruction, Harry kept the pieces of the wand in his mokeskin pouch.

*Main article: Skirmish at Malfoy Manor*
Harry and Hermione took turns using her wand, until Ronald Weasley returned to them carrying wands he had taken from Snatchers. Thereafter, Harry made do with a blackthorn wand, although it did not work as well for him as his own wand had. However, the trio was caught by Fenrir Greyback's Snatcher gang and taken to Malfoy Manor, in the spring of 1998, and all their wands were confiscated. In the ensuing fray, Harry disarmed Draco Malfoy and took his wand. The loss of the Holly wand was noted by the Malfoys, who had doubt Greyback caught the real Harry as the wand he was carrying at the time was not the one he was usually using. From this, Voldemort found out that the wand was destroyed, and his fear of the *Priori Incantatem* was gone.

After escaping the Malfoy Manor, Harry requested Mr Ollivander to repair the wand, to which the wand maker stated it was an impossibility by his knowledge. Despite being prepared for this answer, it was still a major blow to him, and he sadly let the topic go.

#### Repair

"*As his wand resealed, red sparks flew out of its end. Harry knew that he had succeeded. He picked up the holly and phoenix wand and felt a sudden warmth in his fingers, as though wand and hand were rejoicing at their reunion.*"
— Description of the wand's repair[src]

During the Battle of Hogwarts, Harry duelled Lord Voldemort for the final time. As the Elder Wand, which Lord Voldemort wielded, was loyal to Harry, the Killing Curse directed at Harry rebounded and killed Lord Voldemort. Harry then used the Elder Wand to successfully repair his original wand and planned to return the Elder Wand to the grave of Albus Dumbledore.

### Post 1998

It can be assumed that Harry kept his wand, since he went through the trouble of repairing it and used it during his time as an Auror and as Head Auror. He most likely used it when promoted to head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement in the summer of 2019, as well.

## Wandlore

Holly is one of the rarer kinds of wand woods; traditionally considered protective, it works most happily for those who may need help overcoming a tendency to anger and impetuosity. At the same time, holly wands often choose owners who are engaged in some dangerous and often spiritual quest.

Harry's wand was well suited to him, in a lot of ways a perfect match. Harry had a notorious temper, that at times made him somewhat terrifying to his friends. He also was shown to be impulsive, making many decisions on the fly. Harry faced a spiritual and dangerous quest when he, Ron, and Hermione went a hunt for Voldemort's Horcruxes. This quest tested his limits and shook the faith he had in himself and those around him, but at the same time made him a stronger individual.

Holly is one of those woods that varies most dramatically in performance depending on the wand core, and it is a notoriously difficult wood to team with phoenix feather. The wood’s volatility conflicts strangely with the phoenix’s detachment. In the unusual event of such a pairing finding its ideal match, however, nothing and nobody should stand in their way.

Harry's wand contained a phoenix feather core, along with the previously mentioned holly wood. Harry was able to perform extraordinary feats with his wand and displayed a relentless determination, proving true the statement that nothing and nobody should stand in the way of this unusual paring of core and wand wood with its rightful match.

## Other wands

Harry Potter owned several different wands up until the end of the Second Wizarding War, though only his holly and phoenix feather wand was considered truly his. Other wands included:

 Snatcher's wand | Blackthorn, 10", core unknown
 Draco Malfoy's wand | Hawthorn, unicorn hair, 10"
 Elder Wand | Elder, thestral tail hair, 15"
 Voldemort's wand (possibly)

## Behind the scenes

* In *Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1*, when Harry, Ron, and Hermione are captured by the Snatchers in the forest, Greyback searches Harry and it is just seen that he finds his broken wand and throws it away.
* For film adaptations, Harry's wand measured approximately 14 inches long, as opposed to 11 inches in the books.
* In the film adaptation of *Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone* and the film adaptation of *Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets*, Harry's wand is a smooth wand (similar in design to Draco Malfoy's wand or Lucius Malfoy's second wand) unlike the tree-trunk style wand in movies 3-8. In *Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban*, director Alfonso Cuarón offered actors Daniel Radcliffe (Harry), Rupert Grint (Ron), and Emma Watson (Hermione) a selection of new wands to choose from, that would reflect their character's personality better. Designers liked Daniel's choice of a tree-trunk style wand, as it was more magical. It can also be said that they are smooth in the beginning because they're rather new, having only served their masters for some months and later transformed to match their masters. This theory can be supported with reference to Garrick Ollivander's statement that wands "learn" from wizards and vice versa.
	+ The same prior wand design was also used in several of the older video game adaptations, along with the colour of the wand itself varying from game model to artwork established outside of the films.
	+ Also in the first three video games via the PS2/Xbox/GameCube versions, Harry's wand glowed at the tip with its lighting effects "leaking" from the said tip. The colour often varies however:
		- In the PS2 version of *Chamber of Secrets*, the Wand's tip doesn't glow, but only when Harry casts an imperfect self-hitting spell it will glow red (present in the Xbox and GameCube versions as well as the *Philosopher's Stone*'s latest gen console versions).
		- In the Xbox/GameCune versions of *Chamber of Secrets*, the wand's tip glows sky-blue instead. The GBA version also instead gives off different colours as indication for which spell Harry currently has equipped.
		- In the aforementioned versions of *Philosopher's Stone* and the console versions of *Prisoner of Azkaban*, Harry's wand leaks out green sparkles in nod to his iconic green eyes (and is the colour associated with him in the PC and console versions of *Goblet of Fire* when he's near a charm-able target).
* Harry's wand is #963 according to the film adaptation of *Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone* when Garrick Ollivander chooses this wand off the shelf.
* Holly wands are said to be suited to wizards who need assistance overcoming anger issues, and those engaged in a dangerous and spiritual quest. Harry Potter dealt with overcoming anger in his adolescent years, partially caused by a shared connection with Lord Voldemort through the fragment of soul Voldemort accidentally left inside Harry. He was also prophesied to be the one to kill Voldemort, and engaged in a year-long hunt for Horcruxes in an attempt to fulfil this prophecy. Ollivander also noted that a mix of holly and phoenix feather, if properly matched, would result in a nigh-unstoppable wizard.
* In the films, Harry's wand is made from a medium-dark wood despite holly being a pale wood.
* When Prince William visited Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden he participated in a short duel with his wife Kate Middleton and used Harry's wand to do so.
* The wand is part of the Wizarding world franchise logo.
* J.K. Rowling's drawn design for Harry's wand in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child included a reference to "veins" on the handle.

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 *Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone*, Chapter 5 (*Diagon Alley*)
2. ↑ *Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets*, Chapter 17 (*The Heir of Slytherin*)
3. ↑ Cite error: Invalid `<ref>` tag; no text was provided for refs named `GOF9`
4. ↑ Template:OOTP