The Tales of Beedle the Bard

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The Tales of Beedle the Bard is a collection of wizarding fairy tales. It was written many centuries ago.

Albus Dumbledore left this book to Hermione Granger in his will. It was given to her in person by Rufus Scrimgeour, who interrogated her as to why this particular book should be left to her, and what might be the significance of that. Hermione, having been raised on Muggle fairytales, had no idea, and simply answered that maybe Dumbledore thought she would like it since he knew she appreciated books.

[edit] The Tale of the Three Brothers

Main article: The Tale of the Three Brothers

The symbol of the Deathly Hallows. The vertical line represents the Elder Wand; the circle, the Resurrection Stone; the triangle, the Cloak of Invisibility

One story by Beedle is The Tale of the Three Brothers. This story was about brothers who meet Death on the road and each try to outwit him.

Harry's research gives the names of the three brothers as Antioch, Cadmus, and Ignotus. The brothers came to a river that was too deep to wade across. They built a bridge using magic. Death appeared to congratulate them for their ingenuity, and offered them rewards. Antioch asked for a tool to have a greater power than Death. Death snapped a twig off a elder tree and gave it to him - the Elder Wand. Cadmus asked for something to give him power over Death. Death gave him a river stone - the Resurrection Stone. However, Ignotus did not trust Death, and asked him for his own Cloak of Invisibility. The brothers continued on and went their separate ways.

Time passed. Antioch got into a duel and boasted how he had gotten an unbeatable wand,and killed in the night unexpectedly by someone who wanted the wand. Cadmus found misery when he brought a former lover back to life with the Resurrection Stone and learned she had been happier dead. Ignotus hid from Death his whole life using the cloak until they "met as old friends" when Ignotus had reached his elderly years.

The items mentioned in the Three Brothers tale became legendary artifacts known together as the Deathly Hallows. If joined together, they would make the wielder extremely powerful. In fact he or she would become the "Master of Death." Lord Voldemort sought out the Elder Wand because he believed it would allow him to defeat Harry Potter.

However, it is Harry himself who temporarily becomes the Master of Death, as he ultimately united all three artifacts.

[edit] Other Stories

Other tales include:

• The Fountain of Fair Fortune
• The Wizard and the Hopping Pot
• Babbitty Rabbitty and her Cackling Stump
• The Warlock's Hairy Heart

[edit] Behind the scenes

• Antioch was also the name of an ancient town where the disciples of Jesus Christ were first dubbed Christians.
• Cadmus was also the name of the legendary Greek founder of Thebes. He introduced Greece to the alphabet.
• Harry is surprised that Ron has heard of the book while Hermione has not; Hermione has to remind Ron that she and Harry were both raised by Muggles.
• A real version was written by J. K. Rowling and published on November 1, 2007 for her close friends and charity.

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