Dragon heartstring

Wands made with dragon heartstring

Dragon heartstring was a material from a dragon that could be used in the core of a wand and was one of the three supreme core types. It is unknown from which varieties of dragon the heartstrings were collected, and what effect this difference made on the attributes of the wand, if any.

Since the heart was a vital organ in all creatures, it can be assumed that the material was taken after the dragon had either died of natural causes or been killed. It is also unknown what quantity of heartstrings could be collected from each dragon's heart.

Wandlore

Dragon heartstrings produced wands with the most magical power, and which were capable of the most flamboyant spells. Dragon wands tended to learn more quickly than other types. While they could change allegiance if won from their original master, they always bonded strongly with the current owner. The dragon wand tended to be easiest to turn to the Dark Arts, though it would not incline that way of its own accord. It was also the most prone of the three cores to accidents, being somewhat temperamental.

Garrick Ollivander specifically denoted the effects of a dragon heartstring core when paired with cherry and chestnut.

Usage by wandmakers

The wandmaker Garrick Ollivander was known to use dragon heartstrings as one of his three cores; the others being unicorn hairs and phoenix feathers. Gregorovitch also used dragon heartstring in his wands, such as the one he made for Viktor Krum.

Known wands

The following wands had a known dragon heartstring core:

Confirmed

Mr Boot's wand Gormlaith Gaunt's second wand Horace Slughorn's wand Minerva McGonagall's wand Garrick Ollivander's wand Peregrine's wand Bellatrix Lestrange's wand Lucius Malfoy's wand Dolores Umbridge's wand Jacob's wand Gilderoy Lockhart's wand An applewood wand made by Garrick Ollivander An applewood wand made by Garrick Ollivander A chestnut wand made by Garrick Ollivander

An applewood wand owned by a visitor of the British Ministry of Magic A beechwood wand made by Garrick Ollivander A cherry wand made by Garrick Ollivander Hermione Granger's wand Viktor Krum's wand Peter Pettigrew's second wand Yubert Thorne's wand Penelope Fawley's wand

Behind the scenes

• In medical science, "heartstrings" refer to the chordae tendineae of the heart, which connect the papillary muscles to the tricuspid and mitral valves so they can open and close as the heart pumps blood between atrial and ventricular chambers. It is possible that this is the source of a heartstring used in wand cores, although the anatomy of a dragon's heart is not known.
• The reason why heartstrings may have been used is because in fantasy/lore the heart of a dragon is said to be the source of their magical abilities and it possesses multiple uses such as achieving immortality to curing incurable diseases and fatal wounds to becoming more powerful. Ironically, the source of a dragon's power is also said to be its weakness as a dragon's soft underbelly can be easily pierced and the heart punctured.

Appearances

• Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (First mentioned)
• Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (video game) (Mentioned only) (Console versions)
• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (Mentioned only)
• Pottermore (Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter (website) (Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter for Kinect (Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery (Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter: Wizards Unite (First appearance)
• Harry Potter: Magic Awakened (Mentioned only)

See also

• Wand
• Wand core
• Wandlore
• Supreme Cores