Snakes

• Type: Magical Creature, Symbol, Horcrux Vessel, Parseltongue Subject
• Owners: This term is best understood as key associates: Salazar Slytherin, The Gaunt Family, Lord Voldemort. Also associated with Harry Potter through his Parseltongue ability.
• Maker: Natural Species / Magical Symbol

Snakes are limbless, carnivorous reptiles that feature prominently in both the Muggle and Wizarding worlds. Their appearance varies widely by species, but they are generally characterized by their scaled skin, forked tongues, and lidless eyes. Several specific snakes play significant roles in the series:

• Brazilian Boa Constrictor: A large, brown snake that Harry Potter encountered at the zoo. Harry, speaking Parseltongue for the first time unknowingly, magically vanished the glass of its enclosure, allowing it to escape.
• Serpensortia Snake: A large, black snake magically conjured by Draco Malfoy during the Dueling Club to attack Harry. It was vanished by Severus Snape. This event publicly revealed Harry's ability to speak Parseltongue.
• Basilisk: A gigantic, serpentine “King of Serpents” bred by Dark Wizards. The Basilisk of Salazar Slytherin was bright, poisonous green, with large yellow eyes capable of killing with a direct gaze. It possessed immensely strong and venomous fangs.
• Nagini: Lord Voldemort's constant companion, a large, venomous snake of an unidentified species. She was exceptionally intelligent and had a unique bond with her master, acting as both a servant and a temporary Horcrux.

Snakes possess a deep and multifaceted connection to magic, often associated with the Dark Arts.

• Parseltongue: The rare magical ability to speak to and understand snakes. This skill is hereditary and most famously associated with Salazar Slytherin and his descendants, including Lord Voldemort and the Gaunt Family. Harry Potter possessed this ability due to the piece of Voldemort's soul lodged within him.
• Symbolism: The serpent is the emblem of Slytherin House at Hogwarts, representing cunning, ambition, and resourcefulness. Due to its connection with Salazar Slytherin and Lord Voldemort, it is also widely seen as a symbol of Dark Magic. The Dark Mark, the symbol of Voldemort and his Death Eaters, features a skull with a serpent protruding from its mouth.
• Horcrux Vessel: A living creature can be turned into a Horcrux, and Lord Voldemort chose his snake, Nagini, to house a fragment of his soul. This granted her a telepathic connection to Voldemort and a semblance of immortality.
• Potion Ingredients: Various parts of snakes, such as fangs and shed skin, are used as ingredients in Potions. For example, shredded snake fangs are an ingredient in the Strength Potion.
• Magical Creatures: Beyond common snakes, the wizarding world is home to powerful magical serpents like the Basilisk and the Horned Serpent (Pottermore).

The snake's history in the wizarding world is ancient and tied to one of the founders of Hogwarts.

• Salazar Slytherin: The most famous Parselmouth in history, Salazar Slytherin used his affinity for snakes to control a Basilisk he hid within the Chamber of Secrets, intended to purge Hogwarts of Muggle-born students.
• The Gaunt Family: As direct descendants of Slytherin, the Gaunts prided themselves on their pure-blood heritage and their ability to speak Parseltongue. They displayed a snake nailed to the door of their shack.
• Lord Voldemort: The last descendant of Slytherin, Tom Riddle embraced his serpentine heritage. He used the symbol of the snake for his Dark Mark, controlled the Basilisk, and formed a powerful bond with Nagini, eventually making her one of his Horcruxes.

Snakes are a crucial and recurring motif throughout the series, representing danger, hidden knowledge, and Harry's connection to Voldemort.

• In Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Harry's encounter with the boa constrictor is the first major, uncontrollable display of his magic and a foreshadowing of his Parseltongue ability.
• In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, the Basilisk is the primary antagonist, and Harry's ability to speak to snakes causes him to be ostracized by his peers.
• In Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Nagini is instrumental in Lord Voldemort's return to power. Her venom forms a key component of the potion that sustains his rudimentary body.
• In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry's mental link with Voldemort allows him to witness Arthur Weasley's attack through Nagini's eyes, ultimately saving Mr. Weasley's life.
• In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Nagini's role culminates as Voldemort's final Horcrux. She is used by Voldemort to kill Severus Snape before being decapitated by Neville Longbottom with the Sword of Gryffindor, rendering Voldemort mortal.

• In mythology, snakes are complex symbols, often representing deception and evil, but also healing (Rod of Asclepius) and rebirth (Ouroboros), reflecting their multifaceted role in the series.
• The *Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald* film reveals that Nagini was once a human woman who was a Maledictus—a carrier of a blood curse that would eventually and permanently transform her into a beast (film).
• The North American school of magic, Ilvermorny, has a house named Horned Serpent, founded by Isolt Sayre, a descendant of Salazar Slytherin (Pottermore).