Gryffindor Tower

> "*Once you’ve arrived inside Gryffindor Tower, come inside and be welcomed by the roaring fire, stuffed armchairs, and the great view we have from our windows. Our dormitories are reached by climbing the winding mahogany staircase, decorated with crimson and gold. As I said, there's plenty of gold around the tower. Our four-posters are covered with thick scarlet blankets (we have quite windy nights up in the towers) and are embroidered with gold. Gold chandeliers cast warm glows all around.*"
> ― Description of the tower[source]
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>

**Gryffindor Tower** which consists of the **Gryffindor Common Room**, serves as the living quarters for students in Gryffindor House at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. In general, it sports several shades of red and gold. The fireplace mantle is adorned with a portrait of a lion (associated with the house).
Gryffindor Tower is one of the three tallest towers of Hogwarts Castle, alongside Ravenclaw Tower and the Astronomy Tower.

## Entrance

 File:Fat Lady portrait.jpg
The entrance to the Gryffindor common room is concealed under the portrait of the Fat Lady, on the lavish Gryffindor Landing.

To enter one must present the Fat Lady with the correct password of the week. However, getting the password wrong means the student will have to wait the day for another student to come by and pass them the code.

## Common Room

*Main article: Gryffindor Common Room*

> "*...the portrait swung forward to reveal a round hole in the wall. They all scrambled through it — and found themselves in the Gryffindor common room, a cosy, round room full of squashy armchairs.*"
> ― Description of the common room[source]
>
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 File:GryffindorCommonRoom PM.jpg
The common room is a circular room where Gryffindor students can relax after a long day of studying. It is full of squashy armchairs, tables, and a bulletin board where school notices, ads, lost posters, etc. can be posted. The common room is decorated in several shades of red, which is associated with the house. The common room is comfortable, but not more comfortable than the Hufflepuff basement.

There are many windows that look out onto the grounds of the school, and a large fireplace dominates one wall. The mantle of the fireplace is adorned with a portrait of a lion. The fireplace is also connected to the Floo Network, but as it is extremely public except in the dead of night.The walls are decorated with scarlet tapestries that depict witches and wizards, but also various animals. There are also bookcases located in the room, filled with various novels.

 File:GryffindorCommonRoom1 PM.jpg
The common room is usually where celebration parties are held after Gryffindor Quidditch victories, or when Harry Potter completed a task for the Triwizard Tournament. It was also the location for Harry and Ginny Weasley's first kiss following Gryffindor's Quidditch Cup victory in 1997. The common room fireplace was used on several occasions by Sirius Black to contact Harry while he was on the run from the Ministry of Magic.

## Dormitories

 File:GryffindorDormitory.png
The Gryffindor dormitories are also located in the Tower, with two doors leading off from the common room that open to spiral staircases. There are two staircases opening off the common room into the Tower itself: the boys’ staircase on which the seven boys’ dormitories are located (one for each year) and the girls’ staircase, on which the seven girls’ dormitories are located (one for each year). It can be assumed that both dormitories are identical to each other, with the same four-poster beds and hangings.

The girls’ staircase is under a spell so that if a boy sets foot on it and persists for a few steps, a wailing klaxon goes off and the staircase temporarily Transfigures itself into a stone slide, sending him and anyone else on the stairs sailing to the bottom. According to *Hogwarts: A History*, the founders believed that girls were more trustworthy than boys, so that while the girls’ staircase is enchanted to prevent boys from getting in, the boys’ staircase does not carry a reciprocal enchantment. Hermione Granger went into the boys' room on several occasions. This also allowed a possessed Ginny Weasley to sneak in and steal Tom Riddle's diary.

## See also

* Hufflepuff Basement
* Ravenclaw Tower
* Slytherin Dungeon