Marvolo Gaunt's Ring

• Type: Horcrux, Deathly Hallow (Resurrection Stone)
• Owners: Cadmus Peverell, the Gaunt family (Marvolo Gaunt, Morfin Gaunt, Merope Gaunt), Tom Riddle Sr., Tom Marvolo Riddle (Lord Voldemort), Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter
• Maker: Cadmus Peverell (as the Resurrection Stone); Lord Voldemort (as a Horcrux)

Marvolo Gaunt's Ring was a heavy gold ring, described as having been crudely or clumsily made. It was set with a black stone, which was engraved with a symbol that Xenophilius Lovegood would later identify as the sigil of the Deathly Hallows. Marvolo Gaunt mistakenly believed this symbol to be the Peverell coat of arms. The stone itself was the Resurrection Stone, one of the three Deathly Hallows. After Albus Dumbledore destroyed the Horcrux contained within the ring using the Sword of Gryffindor, the black stone was left with a long crack down its center, but the ring and the stone's inherent magic as a Hallow remained intact.

The ring possessed two distinct and powerful layers of magic, one ancient and one modern, making it an object of immense power and danger.

• As a Horcrux: Lord Voldemort transformed the ring into his second Horcrux by murdering his Muggle father, Tom Riddle Sr.. As a Horcrux, it contained a fragment of Voldemort's soul, tethering him to life. To protect it, Voldemort placed a powerful and deadly curse upon the ring. This curse would cause the hand of anyone who wore it to wither and blacken, and the fatal effects would slowly spread throughout the body, eventually leading to death. Severus Snape was able to contain the curse's effects to Albus Dumbledore's hand and arm, but he could only slow its progress, not stop it, giving Dumbledore roughly a year to live.
• As the Resurrection Stone: As one of the Deathly Hallows, the stone had the fabled power to bring back echoes of the dead. By turning the stone three times in one's hand, the owner could summon shades of their deceased loved ones. These were not ghosts, nor were they truly corporeal beings. They were described as being less substantial than living bodies but more than memories. They belonged to the world of the dead and were pained by their return to the living world, appearing sad and cold. Harry Potter used this power to gain the courage to face Voldemort, summoning the shades of his parents, Sirius Black, and Remus Lupin.

The ring's history begins with Cadmus Peverell, one of the three brothers from The Tale of the Three Brothers, who asked Death for the power to recall others from the grave. He received the Resurrection Stone and set it in a ring. The ring was passed down through his descendants, eventually becoming a treasured heirloom of the Gaunt family, a pure-blood line that had fallen into poverty and squalor. Marvolo Gaunt, the patriarch in the early 20th century, prized the ring above all else, believing it proved his lineage from Salazar Slytherin. His son, Morfin Gaunt, inherited it. In the summer of 1943, a sixteen-year-old Tom Marvolo Riddle sought out his maternal relatives in Little Hangleton. He learned about his heritage from Morfin, stunned him, and stole the ring. Riddle then proceeded to the Riddle House and murdered his father and grandparents, using Voldemort's wand. He altered Morfin's memory, framing him for the crime. Tom Riddle wore the ring openly during his time at Hogwarts, having already made it into a Horcrux. Years later, after his first downfall, he hid the protected ring in the ruins of the Gaunt Shack. In the summer of 1996, Albus Dumbledore located the Horcrux. Upon recognizing the stone as the legendary Resurrection Stone, Dumbledore was overcome by a moment of temptation and weakness. Forgetting the ring was almost certainly cursed, he put it on, hoping to see his deceased mother and sister and apologize to them. The powerful curse immediately took effect. Dumbledore managed to destroy the Horcrux with the Sword of Gryffindor but suffered an incurable injury. He later hid the damaged ring inside a Golden Snitch and bequeathed it to Harry Potter in his will.

The ring is a central plot device in the latter half of the series. Its discovery and the subsequent curse sealed Albus Dumbledore's fate, forcing him to orchestrate his own death with Severus Snape to protect Draco Malfoy and further his plans against Voldemort. The destruction of the ring as a Horcrux was the second major victory in the quest to defeat the Dark Lord. As the Resurrection Stone, it played a crucial role in Harry Potter's final journey. It provided him with the emotional fortitude to walk to his death in the Forbidden Forest, fulfilling his destiny as “the master of Death” not by conquering it, but by accepting it. Harry ultimately dropped the stone in the forest, choosing to let it be lost forever rather than use its power again.

• In the film adaptation, *Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2*, the ring's design is more ornate and less “clumsily made” than its description in the novel suggests. The Deathly Hallows symbol is clearly visible on the face of the stone. (film)