ALCHEMY in relation to the new Deathly Hallows covers - UPDATED

I was asked by some people to post a topic on alchemy and alchemical symbols in response to the new Deathly Hallows cover art. Alchemy is of particular interest to us as Harry/Hermione shippers, since it's notable for using a 'chemical wedding' between a mercury female and a sulphur male during the seventh stage to transform the hero into gold, also known as the 'Philosopher's Stone'. If that means nothing to you, read on.

I am by no means an alchemy expert, so please keep that in mind. I hope this might spawn some discussion about both the covers and the role of alchemy in the Harry Potter series.

This post is huge, so I apologize ahead of time.


UPDATED APRIL 15th, 2007
Please check out the end of the post for new information and discussions.

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WHAT IS ALCHEMY? WHY IS IT RELEVANT TO HARRY POTTER?

If you don't know, alchemy in literature is a common theme, particular in stories involving a 'hero's journey'.

The wikipedia defintion of alchemy in this role is this:
Although alchemy takes on many forms, in pop culture it is most often cited in stories, films, shows, and games as the process used to change lead (or other elements) into gold. Also another form that alchemy takes is in the search for the Philosopher's Stone, in which to obtain the ability to transmute gold or to eternal life.

The 'lead into gold' thing is a metaphor for a hero achieving their best self or transforming through trial into someone incorruptible.

There are a number of alchemy stories that you probably already know of. The Lord of the Rings trilogy is one of the most famous. A lesser known one -- but more important to us as Harry Potter fans -- is 'The Little White Horse' by Elizabeth Goudge. I say it's important because JKR has stated that it's her favorite book -- and according to her, is also the book that has directly influenced Harry Potter more than any other novel in existence. I'll discuss this book a little further down in more detail.

JKR has admitted to using alchemy extensively. Here's a quote concerning alchemy that JKR gave in an interview with Anne Simpson of the Herald:

"I've never wanted to be a witch, but an alchemist, now that's a different matter. To invent this wizard world, I've learned a ridiculous amount about alchemy. Perhaps much of it I'll never use in the books, but I have to know in detail what magic can and cannot do in order to set the parameters and establish the stories' internal logic."

So that's the basic primer why its relevant -- onto the meat of the topic.

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THE ALCHEMICAL SYMBOL IN THE DEATHLY HALLOWS COVER ART

Today, the Deathly Hallows covers were released. There were three separate covers -- the US cover, the UK adult cover and the UK children's cover.

Here is the US cover:


You can see Harry and Voldemort in some sort of vast, empty colliseum or some such location. There are curtains, which could signify the veil. You'll notice that Harry is wearing Slytherin's locket, and also that he appears to be casting wandless magic. What must have changed in him during the seventh book that would take him from barely able to cast a simple non-verbal spell in HBP to dueling Voldemort without a wand in Deathly Hallows? In this picture, it's likely to say that Harry has already been 'transformed into gold' -- how else would he have reached this point?


The UK adult cover is not really relevant to this discussion, but the UK children's cover is, in my opinion, by far the most interesting cover we've ever had.


Here's a look at it, in whole.



All of you UK fans will notice that there has been a little symbol on the spine of each of your HP books -- Pig, a feather, etcetera. On this particular book, we've got something special -- it's an alchemical symbol. Here's a close-up:




People who follow the alchemy theory were very pleased to see this symbol, obviously, and H/Hr fans should be doubly so. It really cannot be argued that alchemy does not play the ruling force in the books -- I'll illustrate why later in the post -- but some people (read: R/Hr shippers) have argued that alchemy is only related to the plot, and not to the relationships between the characters. This symbol does not bode well for those people -- it is a near copy of one of the most famous alchemical images of all time. It is the symbol for the 'chemical wedding' between the sulphur male and the mercury female.

Here is the image:

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WHAT THE IMAGE MEANS (Updated March 29th, 2007)

The square represents the four elements: fire, air, water, and earth. In Harry Potter, these elements are used extensively -- most notably, they are the four houses of Hogwarts: Gryffindor is Fire, Slytherin is Water, Ravenclaw is Air, and Hufflepuff is Earth. The square is not shown in the symbol on the book cover for some reason -- maybe the lack of unity in the houses is going to have consequences?

The circle represents a chemical wedding between the Sulphur Male -- in this case, Harry -- and the Mercury female -- in this case, Hermione.

The triangle here is both literal and symbolical -- there's the trio, plus the three angles of the triangle represent the Three Alchemical Principles of Nature. These are mercury, sulphur, and salt. In literary alchemy, these represent three characters showing certain characteristics. I'll list those in the next section.

The book's version of the symbol also differs from the classic one in that it has a line going up through the circle to the tip of the triangle. It's been considered that this is not actually a line, but an arrow:



A vertical arrow represents the spiritual world and a horizontal arrow represents the temporal world. It's possibly a play on the Deathly Hallows, or perhaps the veil. The US cover shows what looks like 'curtains' surrounding an empty plane where Voldemort and Harry are confronting each other -- this may be what lies beyond the veil. It's possible the Deathly Hallows represents the spiritual world.

Other people are speculating that the vertical arrow is pointing to the tip of the triangle -- something common in marriage symbols. That's not necessarily marriage as in love, but marriage as in melding or joining.

Additionally, both the symbols for mercury and the symbols for sulphur contain vertical lines. And interestingly, the mercury symbols include a circle and vertical line and the sulphur symbols contain a triangle and a vertical line.

Here are the symbols. Please forgive my awful, awful drawing ability. I did this with a mouse.



Combine the two, and you get all the elements in the symbol on the cover of the book -- the triangle, the circle, and the vertical line.


So if this symbol was not placed on the cover of the book on a whim -- and I can't see how anyone can believe it was -- it obviously will be the cause of a lot of debate in the shipping world.

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SULPHUR, MERCURY, AND SALT: WHAT THE HELL DOES THAT MEAN?

In a literary alchemy story, there are usually two or three main characters who play certain roles in the quest for the metaphoric Philosopher's Stone. There is always sulphur, who is the hero of the story. There is also always mercury. Salt is usually present, but can be omitted and still be considered an alchemy story.

Sulphur is the heart/soul, usually the main character and the one who is going to be transformed through the alchemic process. He is marked by fire and the Sun -- Harry is ruled by the Sun as a Leo and the scar on his forehead is an exact copy of the sowilo rune -- which represents the sun. There's a picture of the rune on the left.


Mercury is the mind, who forms a chemical wedding with the sulphur character after seven stages -- in this case, seven books. Mercury characters offer guidance and advice, and support the Seeker -- sulphur, again -- in his quest. She is marked by earth and water. This is undoubtedly Hermione.

Salt is the body -- this is usually an opposing mirror in some ways of the sulphur character. Body characters have several common traits: voracious appetite, notable physical size or description (height or weight), etcetera. Obviously, this is Ron.

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THE ROLE OF ALCHEMY IN HARRY POTTER (Updated March 29th, 2007)

One of -- if not the -- most famous real-life alchemist was Nicolas Flamel. Yes, that Nicolas Flamel, from Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. He was a real person and an alchemist, married to a woman named Perenelle. He is attributed to authoring one of the most famous books on the subject of alchemy, 'Exposition of the Hieroglyphicall Figures'. His life's work was discovering -- or more accurately, becoming -- the Philosopher's Stone. In mythical retellings, the Philosopher's Stone could transform any metal into gold and granted the bearer immortality. However, in alchemy as a spiritual or emotional process, the Philosopher's Stone is actually the transformation of the alchemist into gold -- overcoming trials and his own weaknesses to achieve greatness of soul and self. Basically, an incorruptible person.

And although Nicolas Flamel and his wife are now long dead, their pursuit of the 'Philosopher's Stone' did end up granting them a type of eternal life -- their names are known across the world, and their tombs are quite famous landmarks in France. Not to mention, JKR immortalized them in print!

For more information about Nicolas and Perenelle Flamel, their own chemical wedding, and how it relates to H/Hr, please read this comment thread.

All of this should sound familiar to you -- this is basically their entire backstory in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. What may be a surprise to you is that JKR did not create this information -- she simply used what alchemy already provided for her to create a rich foundation for her story. This is actually the true reason why JKR is so unhappy to this day that the name of the book was changed to 'Sorcerer's Stone' in the American version. She allowed it to happen because she wanted it to be published and was asked to do so, but she deeply regrets it now -- and why wouldn't she? The Philosopher's Stone is no made up trinket and it comes into play throughout the series as Harry's ultimate goal.

In an interesting side-note, the Philosopher's Stone and Harry's quest for it is alluded to throughout the novels in an unusual and fun way -- through Quidditch! A person pursuing the stone is traditionally called a 'Seeker'. The symbol for the Philosopher's Stone is the golden circle -- or in the case of Quidditch, the Golden Snitch. Cool, eh?

So, in the first book of Harry Potter, JKR very cleverly shows us what the true theme of the novels really is. She does so through the introduction of Flamel and his physical Philosopher's Stone, and also by designing Seven Trials that Harry has to overcome to obtain it.

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THE SEVEN STAGES OF ALCHEMICAL TRANSFORMATION (Updated March 29th, 2007)

In Literary Alchemy, there are Seven Stages of Alchemical Transformation. These stages are the 'Hero's Journey'. In most alchemical novels, such as 'The Lord of the Rings' or 'The Little White Horse', these seven stages occur throughout a single book, or a short series of books. With Harry Potter, JKR decided to take it a step further -- she devoted an entire novel to each stage of Harry's Journey. This is why there was always exactly seven books intended, and why she will never write an eighth.

Here's a picture of the seven stages, and Nicolas Flamel in the center as the alchemist:




Let's take a look at the Seven Stages of Alchemical Transformation and how they relate to each book.

First Stage - Calcination
The destruction of the ego and letting go of attachments to material possessions. It involves overcoming trials by fire.

In the first book, Harry overcomes the seven trials to get to the Philosopher's Stone, which was protected by the Mirror of Erised -- Harry was only able to receive the Stone because he didn't want it for himself.


Second Stage - Dissolution
Dissolution from peers, and a breaking down of the hero's conscious and allowing the unconscious and feminine parts of our minds to have control. It usually involves getting over prejudices or personal hangups.

In the Chamber of Secrets, Harry is thought badly of by his peers for speaking Parseltongue -- they think he's the heir of Slytherin. But he embraces that part of himself after following Hermione's (the feminine) wisdom about the basilisk. He uses parseltongue to open the Chamber and destroy the diary.


Third Stage - Separation
The hero rediscovers dreams and allows them back into his 'essence'. He lets go of shadowy things from his past that he is ashamed of.

In Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry rediscovers his dream for a family through Sirius. His encounters with Dementors allow him to process and, ultimately, understand what happened to his parents. He also learns how to cast a Patronus -- and then uses it to banish the Dementors in the climax of the novel.


Fourth Stage - Conjunction
The empowerment of the hero's true self, and the union between male and female personalities into a new belief system. In this stage, the hero is able to discern what his true path will be.

In Goblet of Fire, Harry is named a Champion and works with Hermione to learn all the spells he'll need to continue through the trials. At the end of the book, he discovers that Voldemort has returned -- and he knows that their destinies are entwined now.


Fifth Stage - Fermentation
The hero is searching for spiritual power and experiences visions. At the end of the stage, the hero is reanimated in his quest and enlightened about its true purpose.

In Order of the Phoenix, Harry experiences visions from Voldemort. After Sirius's death, Harry and Dumbledore discuss the prophecy -- revealing Harry's true purpose.


Sixth Stage - Distillation
The hero discovers impurities in his ego and suffers setbacks. He struggles with identity as a distraction from his quest. At the end of the stage, he becomes a solidified light of power.

Need I say how this mirrors HBP? Distractions? Impurities of ego? But at the end, he returns to his quest, more sure than ever of what he has to do.

As another interesting aside, here's a quote about this stage from the book 'Seven Stages of Alchemical Transformation':
Distillation is represented by a compound known as Black Pulvis Solaris, which is made by mixing black antimony with purified sulfur. The two immediately clump together to make what the alchemists called a bezoar.

The bezoar is an object familiar to Harry Potter fans -- it also has the largest role yet in this book. Harry saves Ron's life by forcing a bezoar down his throat to counteract his poisoning.

Seventh Stage - Coagulation
The hero achieves Ultima Materia of the soul, the Astral Body. This is referred to as the transformation into the Philosopher’s Stone.

... what this means in the seventh book is left up to speculation.

However, in an alchemy story, this is always the stage where a 'chemical wedding' occurs between the sulphur 'hero' and the mercury 'guide'. It's important to note that the chemical wedding isn't always romantic in nature. In Lord of the Rings, for example, it occurs between Frodo and Sam as they leave behind the body, Gollum. However, in many stories -- particularly ones where the sulphur and mercury characters are of opposite sex -- it typically is romantic in nature. A true joining of partnership that transforms both parties.

In 'The Little White Horse', which as I said above is the book JKR attributes to most directly influencing Harry Potter, the hero on the quest is a girl, Maria. The guide is a male, Robin. Because of the switched gender roles, the archetype of sulphur and mercury are different here -- Maria is the mercury woman, but she represents Heart, not mind. Robin is sulphur male, but he represents Mind, not heart. In the end of the book, they join in a romantic chemical wedding -- and a real wedding -- before Maria must continue on her quest alone -- which she then succeeds at.
(Edited March 29th -- Thanks to Terri for clarification)

There are a number of notable similarities between 'The Little White Horse' and 'Harry Potter'. For example, Maria arrives at her ancestral home only to discover that she's really a princess -- this mirrors Harry's discovery that he's a wizard. Maria also discovers there's a prophecy written about her that names her the 'Moon Princess' and that only she can 'deal with the wicked Men from the Dark Woods'. She goes through the seven stages of Alchemical Transformation culminating in the chemical wedding and is thus 'transformed into gold', allowing her to save her home.

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WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR HARRY/HERMIONE SHIPPERS? (Section Added March 29th, 2007)

For starters, despite what some R/Hr fans want to believe -- that in each other's company, Harry and Hermione somehow become genderless -- the two of them are of opposite sex. The cover of the book shows the symbol for a chemical wedding between a sulphur man and a mercury woman. Harry is sulphur. Hermione is mercury. So it can certainly be speculated that this indicates Harry and Hermione will form a romantic partnership through which Harry will ultimately be transformed into gold -- allowing him to confront Voldemort once and for all. After all, we've already been told that 'The Power He Knows Not' is love. It doesn't sound so hokey when you look at it through the lens of alchemy, does it?


So why might the chemical wedding be romantic in nature, instead of a merging or joining forces?

What leads me to believe it is romantic in nature are three main things.

1) The traditional roles of male/female sulphur/mercury characters in literature -- they are almost always romantic in nature, usually in some sort of 'revelation'.

2) The alchemical symbol on the book cover. The symbol isn't just a random one for a 'chemical wedding', it's a near copy of one of the most famous alchemical image ever published. You'll find it everywhere when studying the theory -- it seems impossible that JKR learned and applied so much alchemy without seeing it and understanding what it means.

Here it is again:



This particular image for chemical wedding is romantic in nature -- in many symbols for chemical wedding, the sulphur/mercury archetypes are pictured as gods, sometimes animals, sometimes the moon and the sun, and sometimes they're not pictured at all. In this one, it is the romantic joining of the sulphur male and the mercury female to form spiritual and physical wholeness that is depicted. This is often referred to as, 'Squaring the Circle'.

That's the picture JKR put on the book. I have to assume it was chosen for a reason.

3) And finally, the use and inclusion of Nicolas Flamel and his wife Perenelle in the Harry Potter series. Using these two, JKR expertly tells us exactly which type of alchemy archetypes she's using in her novels -- the sulphur male and the mercury female.

Nicolas Flamel, both in the books and in real life, was a sulphur male. His quest for the Philosopher's Stone was a failure for many, many years -- however, later in his life he met his wife, Perenelle, a mercury woman. In fact, it was much later in life for the time period -- Nicolas and Perenelle did not meet and marry until Perenelle was 40.

Of the two, Nicolas Flamel is the more famous and now the one more widely known, but Perenelle Flamel was no mere housewife! She was a formidable alchemist in her own right. After their marriage, they worked on alchemical theories together for many years, which ultimated culminated in Nicolas writing his ultimate work on the subject. Through this book, together they gained immortality -- their names have lived on forever.

The story of Nicolas and Perenelle Flamel is one of the more famous sulphur male/mercury female chemical weddings of all time. That these two people are the premiere alchemists in the work of Harry Potter says something to me about what sort of chemical wedding JKR prefers most.

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FURTHER DISCUSSION (Updated April 1st, 2007)

This thread spawned a number of great questions and discussions. Additionally, a few more knowledgeable alchemy theorists dropped me a line to present some more information. I wanted this thread to appeal to a wide audience, so I wrote it in a way that was brief, simple, and without too much complicated information. However, after reading this, a lot of people have discovered interest in the topic and want more information. That's what this section is for -- I'll post links here to discussions within the comments that are of interest, and also some added info that people have given me.

Click on the question to view the original discussion. I'll update this section as more questions are presented.




Why is Hermione mercury? Why can't Ginny be mercury?
In this thread, we discuss why Hermione is mercury, particularly why her name marks her as such. It also discusses Hermione/Mercury's relationship with time from a real Nicolas Flamel emblem, and what this has to do with time-turners.

This is also relevant to the discussion of why Ron can't be sulphur, as many R/Hr fans claim. Terri (H_Hrfan) sent me a set of graphics she made that compare the combinations of Harry/Hermione, Hermione/Ron, and Harry/Ginny and their roles in a possible chemical wedding. Here are the tables for your own comparison:



You'll notice that only Harry/Hermione actually matches the sulphur/mercury alchemical models.




The name 'Luna' appears in many alchemical descriptions. Is this our Luna? And what is Luna's role?
This thread discusses Luna, both in alchemy and in HP. We speculate what Luna's role in the chemical wedding between sulphur and mercury might be. We also discuss Neville and his role.




What are the 'red man' and 'white woman'? Why isn't Ron the red man?
This goes into more discussion about the symbol on the book covers, plus information about why Ron is not the sulphur 'Red Man'.




Could the chemical wedding between sulphur and mercury not include romance? And what are the reasons that it's likely to include romance?
Discussing why the chemical wedding might not necessarily be romance, but what clues JKR has left that it's going to be. Plus, a further look into the chemical wedding between Nicolas and Perenelle Flamel and why JKR included them in the books.




What are other good sites to look up alchemy in detail? What is the emblem of the snake, the phoenix, the toad, and the chemical wedding between sun and moon? What is the role of the toad in the quest for the Philosopher's Stone?
Giving a link to a great site on alchemy for you own research, and a look at a classic alchemical emblem that depicts a snake, a phoenix, a toad, and a moon/sun merging. Sound familiar? Think Harry, Riddle, Neville, and Dumbledore. Here's the image:





Does JKR really know this much about alchemy? What makes people believe she's interested in it?
This thread discusses JKR's interest in alchemy and how she's applying it to her stories, including a look at the 'Golden Egg' in Goblet of Fire. It also takes a look at her online bookshelf to see what types of novels and themes she attracted to.




Is the snake in the crystal ball on back flap of the UK children's cover an alchemical symbol?
Looking at the knotted snake and other emblems of Nicolas Flamel.




Can another pairing in the Harry Potter books be the chemical wedding? Like James/Lily or Bill/Fleur?
Explaining more about what a 'chemical wedding' is and how pairings don't represent chemical weddings. Also goes into a JKR comment about Albus Dumbledore and why he ultimately failed at becoming gold -- because he never found a partner.


If you have any questions, corrections, or material you want to send me, you can reply to this thread or email me at .

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CREDITS (Updated April 15th, 2007)

There's a long list of people whom this primer would not have been possible. In alphabetical order, they are: alexism, angelsslave, avidbeader, azaria, bluestocking, H_Hrfan, hoppenscotch, John Granger, mandrill, moonstruck, PhoenixWriter, redshoes, salamon2, sherbert lemon, sirius83, yolaura, and the crew behind AccioQuote!.

I hope I don't forget anyone -- please let me know if I have!

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This is already insanely long, but for people interested in the subject, there's a ton of threads discussing alchemy and its role in the books more in depth. There are some people who post in these threads that are true geniuses concerning the material. I suggest you have a look -- you'll be shocked at how much of the books are derived from the subject!

Anyway, I hope this cleared up some things and that I didn't put people to sleep. I apologize for any typos or errors.

Cheers and happy shipping!
-veep