Borgin and Burkes

• Type: Shop
• Location: Knockturn Alley, London, England
• Owner/Residents: Mr. Borgin, Caractacus Burke (deceased)
• Key Features: Specialises in the sale of unusual and dangerous Dark Arts objects. Notably contained a Vanishing Cabinet that formed a secret passage to Hogwarts.

Borgin and Burkes is a large, dusty, and dimly lit shop located at 13B Knockturn Alley. It is known throughout the Wizarding World as a purveyor of objects with dark, dangerous, or questionable magical properties. The shop's window display typically features unsettling items, such as a collection of shrunken heads, to attract its niche clientele. The interior is cramped and filled with a vast inventory of sinister artifacts. When Harry Potter first visited, he noted glass display cases containing items like a blood-stained pack of cards, a staring glass eye, and evil-looking masks. Other notable items for sale included human bones, rusty and spiked instruments, a hangman's rope, and a cursed opal necklace. Two of its most prominent items were the Hand of Glory, which gives light only to its holder, and a large, black-and-gold Vanishing Cabinet. The shop was co-founded by Mr. Borgin and Caractacus Burke. Mr. Burke was known for his unscrupulous business practices; he once purchased Slytherin's Locket from a destitute Merope Gaunt for a mere ten Galleons, a fraction of its true value. After graduating from Hogwarts, a young Tom Riddle worked at the shop as an assistant. He used his charm and position to persuade witches and wizards to part with their valuable heirlooms. It was during this time that he murdered Hepzibah Smith to acquire both Helga Hufflepuff's Cup and Slytherin's Locket, which he would later turn into Horcruxes.

Borgin and Burkes is a key location in two major plotlines of the series. In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry Potter accidentally travels to the shop via the Floo Network when he mispronounces “Diagon Alley”. While hiding inside the Vanishing Cabinet, he overhears a conversation between Lucius Malfoy and Mr. Borgin. Lucius Malfoy is selling several dark poisons and other forbidden items to avoid them being found during Ministry of Magic raids. His son, Draco Malfoy, accompanies him, expressing a desire to own the Hand of Glory. This event serves as Harry's first introduction to the dark underbelly of the wizarding world. In Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, the shop becomes central to Draco Malfoy's secret mission from Lord Voldemort. Draco uses the shop's Vanishing Cabinet and its twin, located in the Room of Requirement at Hogwarts, to create a secret passage. He intimidates Mr. Borgin into helping him repair the cabinets. Harry, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger spy on Draco at the shop, confirming their suspicions that he has become a Death Eater. Draco's plan culminates in him successfully smuggling a group of Death Eaters into Hogwarts, leading directly to the Battle of the Astronomy Tower and the death of Albus Dumbledore. Additionally, the cursed opal necklace that nearly kills Katie Bell was purchased by Draco from Borgin and Burkes.

• Borgin: The name “Borgin” may be a play on the word “bargain,” which is ironic given the shop's sinister nature and the high price—often not monetary—of dealing in the Dark Arts. It also has a vaguely sinister sound, fitting the shop's owner.
• Burkes: The name “Burke” is almost certainly a reference to William Burke, one half of the infamous “Burke and Hare” duo. Burke and Hare were notorious murderers in 19th-century Edinburgh, Scotland, who sold their victims' corpses to a medical school for dissection. This connection highlights the shop's macabre and deadly trade.

• In the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry spends more time exploring the shop's various dark artifacts, including being trapped by a sarcophagus and seeing the Hand of Glory in action.
• The full name of Mr. Burke, Caractacus Burke, and the specific details of his transaction with Merope Gaunt for Slytherin's Locket were revealed on the Pottermore website (now Wizarding World). (Pottermore)