Fools' Gold

Fool's Gold

By JoTwo

From discussions in fandom it's clear that there are lots of alchemical references scattered throughout the Harry Potter books. However the only time so far that alchemy has been vital to the story line was the first book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. I wondered if alchemy would turn up again later on in the series, especially in book 7, as it is a common literary/dramatic device for a plot to turn full circle.

However, on reading HBP I changed my mind because JKR introduced the Horcruxes as the device that Voldemort was using to become immortal. Dumbledore stated in response to Harry's question about why Voldemort had not used a Philosopher's Stone instead to achieve immortality that Voldemort liked to operate alone and did not want to be dependent on the Elixir. (Plus as a literary device alchemy probably wasn't evil enough for Voldemort's character. After all there is nothing morally wrong with drinking the Elixir, whereas Horcruxes are the wickedest magical device as they are created after murder.) This made me think that alchemy was thus redundant in terms of the plot.

I put the idea aside until I read that the set for Snape's office in the COS film had possible alchemical phrases carved on the arches and the window showed a real-life person who was said to be an alchemist, Basil Valentine. I've since re-watched this scene on DVD and I spotted a chemical, or possibly alchemical, experiment set up in there as well.

I found this interesting because before HBP I had a theory that Snape was Voldemort's alchemist.

Now that these references to alchemy have been associated with Severus in the film, I wonder if I was on the right track, after all. I know the films aren't canon, but people pointed out that the battered, old book on Snape's desk in COS looked remarkably similar to the Half-Blood Prince's potion book on the adult Bloomsbury cover. If this was foreshadowing then maybe the alchemical references are too.

The reason I started thinking about alchemy in the beginning is because of a couple of things I'd read on JKR's website. The first was that in an early version of the killing of the Potters at Godric's Hollow, Sirius was going to meet a character called Pyrites, a servant of Voldemort, outside the Potters' house. JKR correctly says that pyrites means fool's gold.

Secondly, in the very early page of Philosopher's Stone that you can find hidden on JKR's web site, Harry, Ron and Hermione are discussing Nicholas Flamel and the Philosopher's Stone. Hermione says she has read about this in a book, Alchemy, Ancient Art and Science by Argo Pyrites. The Argo was the ship of Jason and the Argonauts on their voyage to find the Golden Fleece. Thus the writer's first name is connected with gold too. (Also the title reminds me of Snape's subtle science and exact art of potion-making comment.)

Whether or not the Pyrites who worked for Voldemort was the same as the author of the book about alchemy, a name that means fool's gold seems the type of punning moniker that JKR would give an alchemist. Especially as the quest was usually seen as fruitless.

I conjectured if all this meant that Voldemort had once had the Pyrites character performing alchemy for him. I wondered if when JKR cut him out, she completely dropped the role of Voldemort's alchemist or had given it to another character. I thought if she had re-allocated it then the likeliest candidate was Snape.

Being Voldemort's alchemist would be another reason, apart from being the eavesdropper and a spy, for explaining Snape's high position within the Death Eaters. Also alchemy seems to be the type of magic that not any witch or wizard can perform, but which Snape would be eminently suited to. Much of the methodology is similar to potion making.

Alchemy involves heating and distilling substances again and again. Alchemists used equipment like the Bain Marie or Balneum Mariae (Mary's bath), which was a double cooker. An inner pan was gently warmed by the water in an outer pan, which was the only part in direct contact with the flames. This sounds similar to heating a cauldron when making potions.

In the alchemical version of distillation an impure mixture is heated in a still, or retort, to evaporate the substance that one wants to obtain and then the vapour is allowed to cool and form a liquid through condensation. (This procedure is also used in real life in chemistry.) Boiling and condensing substances seems a process that a potion brewer could perform quite easily.

As well as requiring similar practical skills, another similarity between alchemy and potion making is that they both need time. Many of the alchemical processes like distillation had to be repeated over and over to continuously refine the result. Making potions also requires patience and cannot be speeded up. For example Snape tells Umbridge that it would take a complete moon cycle to brew more Veritaserum. Thus Snape would have the right mind set for alchemy, as he would know it could not be rushed and would be prepared to wait.

Although some alchemical theories imagined both the Philosopher's Stone and the Elixir as powder, JKR follows the tradition that the Stone was literally a stone and the Elixir was liquid. Dumbledore tells Harry that the Elixir of Life must be drunk regularly to extend life. As the Elixir is a liquid that has magical effects, to all intents and purposes, I would classify it as a type of potion.

So that's my big idea. Only time and JKR will tell if I'm on the right track, or simply chasing fool's gold.