If you’re a Harry Potter fanatic, you’ve certainly watched Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2. Apart from the criticism that the films receive for not giving the books “justice”, there are numerous aspects of the film that have kept the enthusiasts of the series speculating.
Both films were the conclusion to the prominent Harry Potter series and they are esteemed by fanatics even now. As such, it raises the question even almost a decade after – what is the Deathly Hallows symbol? The Deathly Hallows has become an eminent part of modern pop culture, with merchandise, banners, and even cults based around one symbol from a film.
And no, this is not the Illuminati dominating the world! In this article, I will accentuate what the infamous Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows symbol means and where it originated.
What is The Deathly Hallows Symbol?
The Deathly Hallows symbol is a representation of the Deathly Hallows artifacts; the Elder Wand, the Resurrection Stone, and the Cloak of Invisibility. It is designed with a triangle (the Cloak of Invisibility), a circle (the Resurrection Stone), and a line (the Elder Wand). Since the Deathly Hallows symbol is a combination of the three Deathly Hallows, it could represent the Master of Death. Although this symbol is seldom mentioned in the films, it is cited numerous times in the novels.
What are The Deathly Hallows?
The Deathly Hallows themselves are artifacts mythologized in The Tales of Beedle the Bard, another novel by J.K. Rowling – inscribed as “three brothers encounter Death”. In the plot, the brothers are accomplished wizards that unite their powers to cross a river, where Death lies. Death tries to deceive them by offering a gift to each of them; the elder brother requests an unbeatable wand (the Elder Wand), the other desires the authority to raise the dead (the Resurrection Stone), and the final one wants a clock that can make him invisible (the Cloak of Invisibility). However, Death consumes two of the brothers, while the youngest lives until he is prepared to unsheathe himself to Death.
What inspired The Deathly Hallows Symbol?
In 2017, BBC filmed a documentary, Harry Potter: A History of Magic, for the 20th anniversary of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. J.K. Rowling appeared in the documentary and revealed the origins of the Deathly Hallows symbol.
According to J.K. Rowling, she was inspired by the film, The Man Who Would Be King. The next day, she received the news of her mother passing away. J.K. Rowling explains;
“The Masonic symbol is very important in that movie, and it was 20 years later that I looked at the sign of the Deathly Hallows and realized how similar they were. When I saw the movie again and saw the Masonic symbol, I went cold all over and I thought, ‘Is that why the Hallows symbol is what it is?’ And I’ve got a feeling that, on some deep, subconscious level, they are connected. So I feel as though I worked my way back over 20 years to that night, because the Potter series is hugely about loss, and – I’ve said this before – if my mother hadn’t died I think the stories would be utterly different and not what they are.”
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