To celebrate the 20 years of the one and only Harry Potter series, the New-York Historical Society has created an exhibit displaying the wide history of how the series was created. This fascinating exhibit is appropriately named “A History of Magic,” allowing viewers and Harry Potter lovers to take a trip down memory lane of the Wizarding World.
The entrance of the exhibit literally shows how the series started. Many hardcore “Potterheads,” or Harry Potter fans, know that author J.K. Rowling came up with the idea to write the series on a long train ride home in England. She began to note her Harry Potter and Hogwarts world on napkins and scraps of paper. These scraps with long paragraphs of scribbled writing can be recognized from “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,” and are displayed and framed in the exhibit, showing just how detail-oriented of a writer Rowling is. This first room also includes paintings and drawings of various characters, including Professor Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, and of course, eleven-year-old Harry himself. A few of these works of art were done by Rowling, others were by official illustrator Mary GrandPre and painter Jim Kay. It is written in one of the descriptions that Rowling began to draw these characters because she was curious about what they looked like.
An exciting aspect of this exhibit is that each room contains artifacts and information about J.K. Rowling’s inspirations and are divided into Hogwarts classes. A few standouts include the Herbology room, which has a huge table filled with different plants and small speakers in which one could press a button and hear narrators read Herbology related sections of the books. Pictures of plants that are mentioned in the books line the walls, along with descriptions of their names and where they came from. The Astronomy room is also very fascinating; the ceiling has been transformed into outer space, and pictures and names of the most well-known constellations are revealed. One glass stand even contains a real crystal ball!
View this post on InstagramGoodnight from the Astronomy Tower…errr Astronomy gallery, that is! 🔭✨ #HarryPotterNYHS
Many of these rooms include interactive activities for viewers. In the Potions room, fans can mix crazy ingredients to create unique potions! A huge, shimmering table sits in the middle of the Divination room, with projections of three fortune telling cards that could predicts futures with three quick taps. Another room is filled with all things Quidditch; the golden snitch is projected onto the wall, darting from one corner to the next in seconds. Fans and museum goers can try to catch it and win the Quidditch game!
Some rooms don’t have specific themes, but are embedded with Harry Potter spirit. Rough drawings and beautiful paintings of characters such as Hagrid the Gamekeeper, Peeves the Poltergeist, and Professor Severus Snape align the walls. One wall in particular has pages of a scene from “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets,” featuring Harry and Ron Weasley meeting the mer-people at Hogwarts. Rowling did not end up including this scene in the final draft of the book, but it is available for viewers to read and create new scenarios in the mind. The pages themselves are typed but have Rowling’s edits and pencil marks all over it, adding to the authenticity of the overall experience. The exhibit includes so many more of these carefully planned notes and tiny details; Rowling had even written out Harry, Ron, and Hermione’s class schedules. She had also drawn a map of the Hogwarts grounds, complete with the giant squid and the Whomping Willow tree, and multiple drawings of the Sorting Hat, with drafts of its sorting song! These details are meant to convey the depth of dimension they add to the series, especially the characters.
The name of the exhibit, “A History of Magic,” is meaningful to the books, pictures, and descriptions of magical creatures, items, and people, created by J.K. Rowling, that are explained throughout the experience. The aspects that Rowling did not create, but still included, such as witches, mermaids, and unicorns also have historical background in the exhibit. Broomsticks and cauldrons owned by real historical witches are on display, adding a unique aspect to magical history. Unicorns, their power, and the benefits of their blood are explained in the books. The origins of mermaids and mermen and how Rowling incorporated them into the Harry Potter series are also included, changing how readers saw them in “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.” Some magical creatures and people that Rowling composed in the books are true in history. For example, through the exhibit the viewer learns that Nicolas Flamel, featured in the first Harry Potter book, was a real person and supposed alchemist who lived in 14th century France. Fluffy, the three-headed dog also in the first book, was based on the creature Cerberus, from Greek mythology.
The Harry Potter: A History of Magic exhibition has grabbed a Portkey across the pond to @NYHistory. #HarryPotterNYHS https://t.co/8rWerBvCD5
— Pottermore (@pottermore) October 6, 2018
The last room (before the gift shop) is completely dedicated to how the Harry Potter series has contributed to modern creations. The book and play “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” is widely featured, giving the background of how the play was created. The costumes from the Broadway show are on display, and there is even a small replica of the theater, including the set. The other half of this room contains paraphernalia from the movie “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them,” including a description of the movie and how it relates to the Harry Potter series. As exhibit-goers walk out the door away from the magic, they are shown one last wonder: the Harry Potter books are on display and for sale, but in around 15 different languages! Each book of each language has its own cover, and are all illustrated differently and artistically.
This exhibit is a very interesting way to learn the history of not only the Harry Potter series, but of the magical aspects that helped to create it. The mythology behind the creation of the series is something that does not seem to get as much recognition as the book series itself, but it is such a strong part of the foundation for it. It’s always fun for Harry Potter fans to immerse themselves in how it all started, and this exhibit is an extremely effective way of sharing the history of this beautiful series. Happy 20th anniversary, fellow Potterheads!
Harry Potter: A History of Magic is on view till January 27 on the Upper West side of Manhattan.
