Pottermore art: The Man with Two Faces

‘And suddenly, their wardrobes were empty, their trunks were packed, Neville’s toad was found lurking in a corner of the toilets; notes were handed out to all students, warning them not to use magic over the holidays (‘I always hope they’ll forget to give us these,’ said Fred Weasley sadly) …’

- Chapter Seventeen, The Man with Two Faces, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone

From the comments posted in Chapter Seventeen, it’s clear to see that many of you are fascinated by (and would love to visit) the Hogwarts hospital wing:

'This is the most beautiful place at Hogwarts … I could stay here for ever - it is wonderful!' - FlooSnitch27816, Gryffindor

You’ve enjoyed spotting the lavatory seat in the hospital wing Moment, too:

‘I saw Fred and George's toilet seat :)’ – HexCat29735, Gryffindor

Drawings of Madam Pomfrey feature heavily in this chapter (‘I love her! She's just so motherly and kind.’ – PixieFirebolt8956, Hufflepuff) as do depictions of the House Cup.

- Madam Pomfrey -

by PotionDust205

- Hospital wing -

by PotionQuill4

by StoneGalleon2407

- House Cup -

by NimbusFiamma61

Pottermore art: Through the Trapdoor

All they could hear apart from their footsteps was the gentle drip of water trickling down the walls. The passageway sloped downwards and Harry was reminded of Gringotts.

- Chapter Sixteen, Through the Trapdoor, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone

The penultimate chapter of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, Through the Trapdoor, sees Harry, Ron and Hermione venturing beneath Hogwarts.

Here are our favourite interpretations of some of the challenges they face as they make their way through the underground chambers.

- The underground chambers -

by LumosBlade30

Have you discovered them?

Last week, we hid a selection of new book excerpts on Pottermore.com. Did you manage to find them all? If you missed the clues we posted on @Pottermore, here they are again:

‘Transfiguration is some of the most complex and dangerous magic you will learn at Hogwarts …’ 
- Chapter Eight, The Potions Master, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone

‘Hagrid almost had to drag Harry away from Curses and Counter-Curses …’
- Chapter Five, Diagon Alley, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone

The Standard Book of Spells (Grade I) by Miranda Goshawk. All first-year students should have a copy.

' … did Snape expect him to remember everything in One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi?'
- Chapter Eight, The Potions Master, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone

The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection. It's a set text for first-years.

Having trouble finding the books? Why not ask for help in your common room or the Great Hall? And don’t forget to read the hint on the Pottermore Gateway …

Pottermore art: The Forbidden Forest

‘Right then,’ said Hagrid, ‘now, listen carefully, ’cause it’s dangerous what we’re gonna do tonight an’ I don’ want no one takin’ risks. Follow me over here a moment.’

He led them to the very edge of the Forest. Holding his lamp up high he pointed down a narrow, winding earth track that disappeared into the thick black trees. A light breeze lifted their hair as they looked into the Forest.

- Chapter Fifteen, The Forbidden Forest, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone

Pottermore users have posted some beautiful pictures of the Forbidden Forest on Pottermore.com and we’ve seen some really interesting comments about what it would be like to visit it. The Forest is full of magical, mysterious and dangerous beasts, centaurs and unicorns amongst them, and we thought you’d enjoy seeing some of the pictures that Pottermore users have drawn of these two types of creatures.

Fang, Hagrid’s enormous black boarhound also makes an appearance in this chapter, and this slobbery, faithful and sometimes cowardly dog has inspired some wonderful artwork.

- Centaurs -

by WingOak24260

Chivalry, loyalty, wit and cunning

You might belong in Gryffindor,
Where dwell the brave at heart,
Their daring, nerve and chivalry
Set Gryffindors apart;
You might belong in Hufflepuff,
Where they are just and loyal,
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true
And unafraid of toil;
Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,
If you’ve a ready mind,
Where those of wit and learning,
Will always find their kind;
Or perhaps in Slytherin
You’ll make your real friends,
Those cunning folk use any means
To achieve their ends.

- Chapter Seven, The Sorting Hat, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone

Last week, we asked Pottermore users to give us examples of some of the house traits highlighted in the Sorting Hat’s song in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. Gryffindors told us about their greatest acts of chivalry, and Hufflepuffs their greatest acts of loyalty. Ravenclaws showed off their wit, and Slytherins got the chance to demonstrate their cunning.

We saw lots of really wonderful tweets – some funny, some poignant – and had great fun choosing which to retweet on @Pottermore. Here’s a selection of our favourites …

Pottermore art: Norbert the Norwegian Ridgeback

This week’s selection of Pottermore art comes from Chapter Fourteen, Norbert the Norwegian Ridgeback. The community’s illustrations of dragons are wonderfully diverse, as you can see below.

Remember, if you’d like to discover more about dragons or want to share your own dragon pictures, you can visit the Dragons entry in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone on Pottermore.com.

Our next Pottermore art post will showcase pictures from Chapter Fifteen. We’ll be choosing pictures for this very soon, so make sure you upload your illustrations to The Forbidden Forest in the next few days if you’d like the chance to have your work featured on the Insider.

- Dragons -

by BladeMarauder12655