Isn't it Unicorn tail hair that is used in wands, as opposed to from anywhere on the body? Given they are like horses, no one hair would be long enough to comprise a wand core unless from the tail, surely? I don't have my books on me at the moment, but if someone would be kind enough to look it up I'd appreciate the help x The General 18:06, May 23, 2011 (UTC)
Price[]
How is a unicorn hair costs 10 galleons when wands cost 7? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 114.31.71.109 (talk • contribs).
- Answer 1: The wizarding world, much like the Muggle world, undergoes inflation. This is confirmed in Quidditch Through the Ages. Therefore, it is possible that while a wand only costs 7 Galleons in 1991, by the time of 1996-1997, they've increased in price enough so that even the unicorn hair costs 10. For this to be true, though, one must ignore Pottermore.
- Answer 2: It would be rather unfair of Ollivander to not charge a flat fee for wands, not matter what they are made of. After all, is it your fault if you're chosen by a wand more expensive than you can afford? I can imagine Ollivander to be the kind of person to take that sort of personal loss for the sake of matching up wand and wizard.
- Answer 3: Horace was drunk and couldn't accurately remember what the price of unicorn hair was.
- Answer 4: A tail hair cost ten galleons, but it may be a meter long. Wands are less than a third of that. A single tail hair can make 3 or 4 wands.
- Answer 5: I know Harry only paid 7 galleons, but his core came from Dumbledores phoenix companion over 50 years before. We know this because Tom Riddle had the twin wand. Harry may have gotten a discount because the wand hadn't chosen anyone for half a century! ( Or maybe because Harry was famous. ) Or the feathers may have been donated, and therefore, free. Only the workmanship was included in the price. Either way, 7 galleons seems cheap. Maybe Ollivander gave first time customers a student discount?
- Several characters had trouble replacing wands in both books and the movies. Even Draco, who seems rich, borrowed his mother's wand. Ron can't afford one and has his taped back together. Maybe Draco just couldn't find one that liked him. After all, he was having a personality conflict, wanting to be good and trying to be bad. If it only coated 7 galleons for a full price wand, they would be easier to replace.
Merge[]
Pottermore confirms that the hair used in wandmaking and bandaging is tail hair (see here), which makes, in my opinion, having both this page and unicorn tail hair redundant. -- 1337star (Drop me a line!) 00:37, September 3, 2013 (UTC)
- I agree. Dr. Galenos (talk) 14:49, September 3, 2013 (UTC)
- Agreed. --Hunnie Bunn (talk) 21:23, January 3, 2014 (UTC)