Divination

A Chinese Oracle Bone
This humble-looking bone is the oldest exactly datable item in Harry Potter: A History of Magic. On the front, the diviners observed that nothing of great significance would happen in the immediate future. On the reverse is a recorded a lunar eclipse viewable at Anyang, China, on 27 December 1192 BC. Oracle bones were known historically as ‘dragon bones’, emphasising their magical qualities.

Lucky in Love?
When looking for love, it is worth bearing in mind that, according to this Thai manuscript, a hot-tempered couple has a better chance of living happily together than a demonic male and an angelic female. In 19th-century Siam, people would have consulted a divination specialist (mor doo) on matters of love and relationships.

These drawings show the animals from the Chinese zodiac, which would have been used to create horoscopes.

Crystal Gazing
John Melville wrote this popular guide in the 19th century, as interest in crystallomancy increased. He recommended taking ‘an infusion of the herb Mugwort or of the herb Succory’, which, ‘if taken occasionally during the Moon’s increase would constitute an aid to the attainment of the most desirable physical conditions of the experimenter’s body.’ It is unclear how far Melville’s instructions helped those not gifted with Second Sight.

Smelly Nelly
‘Smelly Nelly’, the Paignton witch who owned this crystal ball, was named after her taste for strong perfume. She believed that the fragrance appealed to the spirits who helped her to divine the future. One witness reported, ‘You caught her scent a mile off downwind … to be out with a Full Moon, Smelly Nelly and her crystal was quite an experience.’ Known as a Moon crystal, the black globe should be consulted at night, so that the seer could read the Moon’s reflection in the glass.

A Palmistry Hand
Palmistry, also known as chiromancy, requires the diviner to interpret the shape and lines of the hand. This ceramic palmistry hand shows the significant lines and mounts on the palm and wrist. Hands like this were first manufactured for teaching in Britain in the 1880s. A famous palmist around that time was William John Warner, also known as Cheiro, who reputedly predicted events such as the sinking of the Titanic.

Reading the Palms
This 700-year-old manuscript contains a collection of prophecies and guides to fortune-telling. Here you can see the section which explains palmistry. On the right hand, a vertical line running across the palm reads, ‘this line represents love’. A vertical line running between the middle and index finger has a less fortunate meaning: ‘This line signifies a bloody death; if the line reaches unto the middle of the finger it signifies a sudden death.’ Other lines predict illnesses and attributes, including courage and humility.

The Old Egyptian Fortune Teller
Supposedly a collection of Egyptian divination techniques, this pamphlet was compiled by an anonymous British writer. Although the guidance is dubious, it includes one sage piece of advice for Harry Potter himself: if you dream that you ‘fight and destroy serpents’, you will achieve ‘victory over enemies’. In addition to palmistry, it explains how to divine the future by interpreting the moles on your body: for example, ‘a mole on the buttock denotes honour to a man and riches to a woman’.

‘Many Curious Things I See’
Tasseography — from the French tasse (cup) and Greek graph (writing) — is a form of Divination that interprets the sediment in tea-cups. The first European accounts of this method of Divination appeared in the 17th century, following the introduction of tea from China.

This cup was made in England in the 1930s. Inside are symbols to help interpret the leaves, while this legend runs around the rim: ‘Many curious things I see when telling fortunes in your tea.’

A Practical Guide to Tea-Leaf Reading
This detailed manual on tea-leaf Divination, written by ‘a Highland Seer’, provides advice on the ideal size and shape of cup and the type of tea to use. In The Prisoner of Azkaban, Professor Trelawney told Harry that the presence in his cup of ‘the Grim’, a large dog, signified death. In this book, in contrast, the appearance of a dog towards the top of the cup is said to be a favourable sign, denoting a faithful friend.