Nose-Biting Teacups

• Type: Magical Joke Item
• Owners: Fred Weasley and George Weasley (as proprietors of Weasleys' Wizarding Wheezes); an older set was owned by the Black Family
• Maker: Unknown

Nose-Biting Teacups are enchanted items of crockery designed to look like ordinary, harmless teacups. Their deceptive appearance is key to their function as a practical joke item. The only specific physical description provided in the novels is for a set found at Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place, which were noted to be purple in colour.

The primary magical property of a Nose-Biting Teacup is to physically bite the nose of any person who attempts to drink from it. The enchantment animates the teacup at the moment of use, causing it to snap at the unsuspecting drinker. As a product sold in Joke Shops, its purpose is purely for amusement and mischief. The bite is presumably more startling and comically painful than seriously injurious, consistent with other prank items such as Stink Pellets and Belch Powder.

Nose-Biting Teacups were known to be sold at Zonko's Joke Shop in the village of Hogsmeade. In 1993, Ron Weasley expressed his desire to visit Zonko's specifically to see items like Nose-Biting Teacups during his first visit to Hogsmeade. In the summer of 1995, during the cleaning of Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place, Molly Weasley and members of the Order of the Phoenix discovered a set of purple, biting teacups. She promptly threw them away along with other dangerous or cursed objects left behind by the Black Family. This suggests that such enchanted prank items had been in circulation for at least a generation. Following their departure from Hogwarts, Fred and George Weasley began to sell Nose-Biting Teacups at their own highly successful joke shop, Weasleys' Wizarding Wheezes, located at Number Ninety-Three, Diagon Alley. They were featured as one of the many trick-related magical items available for purchase in 1996.

Nose-Biting Teacups are a world-building element that adds to the whimsical and mischievous side of the Wizarding World. Their presence in shops and homes helps to illustrate the everyday integration of magic into pranks and novelties. The items are significant in characterizing the inventory of wizarding Joke Shops, first Zonko's and later the more prominent Weasleys' Wizarding Wheezes, underscoring the business acumen and playful nature of the Weasley twins. The discovery of an old set at Grimmauld Place also contributes to the atmosphere of the ancient and dilapidated house, showing it to be cluttered with not just Dark artifacts but also a variety of troublesome magical objects.

• In the LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7 video game, Nose-Biting Teacups appear as interactive objects within Weasleys' Wizarding Wheezes and will bite the player's character. (video game)