Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place, once the near regal House of Black, is invisible to muggles, dementors, and next-door neighbors. The calm exterior of the residence is so formal that the lines lend transparent insulation so as to augment the Fidelius Charm hiding it. On the door is a silver knocker in the shape of a twisted serpent, suggesting an age old link with the House of Slytherin [at
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.] Otherwise, the door is not adorned - no keyholes, handles, numbers or anything to indicate that it is in fact a door. The only way to gain passage through this portal is by magic.
When just a step away from entering, there is an atmospheric texture of coolness, as it seems to be an enduring sense of distance imparted through the sensation of displaced time and place, similar to the detachment and unmoved quality of the family that lived there. The less than cordial welcome to this secretive household stems in part from the aloof, elite Black family preference for 'pure blood.' The lines are smooth but not conducive to graceful living.
Street address numbers skip from 11 to 13, although this subtle allusion to the Twelfth Trump, The Sacrifice, escapes the attention of local muggles and even some within the wizarding world.
The classic, very narrow, Georgian architecture follows the Soft Winter historic period, known for perfection of line the Black family believes they have surpassed. The atmosphere is, in part, influenced by a number of magnetic, intuitive, and enigmatic family members who have left their psychic fingerprints here and there. The interior is built around past life rather than the future. Art favors a ritual, ceremonial, and stage-like prompt for quiet awe, and exact placement suggestive of the rules: 'keep your place' - and 'silence is golden.'
The need for exact balance in a setting like the Black house registers empathically when ever someone enters the extended hallway on the other side of the door. The amount of summoned and unused energy overwhelms the dim passage that leads to the
dining room-kitchen suspended like a dim light at the end of a dark tunnel. That ever-present heaviness of uncirculated air, after so many centuries, is close to tactile.
The peculiar thing is that the interior design, composed of long, straight, unwavering lines throughout the house, makes restoration of the original form impossible, if ever there is variation of the pattern [colloquial term: change.] The very narrow, long hall is like the point of view of many past residents of the house - that includes Kretcher, the passive-aggressive house elf. Georgian blueprints of this type cause hot akasha to rush in, once through the front door, and fill the whole house immediately - like a sluice box funneling water into a creek. All the collected Akasha pooled in the dining room area illustrates the reservoir effect guaranteed by the lay out of the first floor.
Tarot Add: The Weasley home, known as The Burrow, is the reflex action to the Black Family house. In the House System [for interpretation of the Tarot] Trump IV is responsible for all gatherings that take place in the dining room. Trump XIV is a basic guide and sets a code of supervision in the kitchen, so all work therein can be applied to a furnace and well stocked laboratory. [Both Trump can be superimposed on the Upper and Lower furnaces.]
Sirius, last living heir of the Black family and the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black,
provided Twelve Grimmauld as a meeting place for The Order of the Phoenix. He grew up in the Black house with his brother, Regulus, and parents Orion and Walburga. As a young teen, his image was burned from the family tapestry when he left home to live with the Potters.
The original Order of the Phoenix, organized by Albus Dumbledore.
Members are the defensive backbone of the wizarding community,
active during the 1900s, from wizards to Squibs.
Members of the Order of the Phoenix
Black, Sirius - Harry's Godfather
[go Sirius Black - Canis Major and Leo alpha, Regulus - both Black brothers names after temple guardians. Also contains info about ALKES, a key to Rupert Grint star chart].
Sirius was the best friend of James Potter, Remus Lupin and Peter Petigrew. He is an unregistered Animagus who takes the form of a large black dog, symbol on Black Family crest. He is a cousin of Nymphadora Tonks, Bellatix Lastrange and Narcissa Malfoy. Sirius Black tattoo reference and
Line of Intuition [Sirius Black in a meeting]
Diggle, Dedalus - member of the Advance Guard that helped Harry in his escape from the Dursleys to Twelve Grimmauld Place
Doge, Elphias - member of original Order of the Phoenix, with the Advance Guard that helped Harry in his escape from the Dursleys to Twelve Grimmauld Place
Dumbledore, Albus Percival Wulfric Brian - Headmaster at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry; founded the Order of the Phoenix; Harry's mentor and protector
Dumbledore, Aberforth - brother of Albus Dumbledore, facilitated students' meeting at the Hog's Head in Hogsmeade.
Figg, Arabella Doreen - Squib, she helped Harry after Dementor attack and testified on Harry's behalf in Ministry of Magic attempt to expel Harry from Hogwarts
Fletcher, Mundungus "Dung" - 'slight of hand' member of the new Order of the Phoenix; he went AWOL during the Battle of the Seven Harrys.
Hagrid, Rubeus - half-giant, keeper of keys and grounds, responsible for care of Hogwarts special bestiary [a weakness for dragons]; helped Harry bridge the gap to the Wizarding World, collect his school supplies in Diagon Alley, and navigate through his first year; part of Advance Guard when Harry made his escape from the Dursleys to Twelve Grimmauld Place
Jones, Hestia - member of the Advance Guard that helps Harry in his escape from the Dursley house to Twelve Grimmauld Place
Lupin, Remus J.
Werewolf, Defense Against Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts during Harry's third year. He dresses rather shabbily, and though quite young, his light brown hair is flecked with gray. In the Astronomy room, Professor Lupin teaches Harry how to conjure a Patronus and instructs him to think of a happy and powerful memory in order for it to work. He moved to OOP headquarters after he left Hogwarts; member of the Advance Guard that helped Harry escape from the Dursley house.
Professor McGonagall - Bowl of Stars, Cauldron, Cup
ref: Trump XIV Temperance Q & A Equilibrium and Spontaneity
McGonagall, Minerva - Animagus; Deputy Headmistress and Head of Gryffindor House; Harry's Transfiguration teacher. Professor McGonagall recognized Harry's gift* early on and urged him to participate in the school Quidditch competitions as Gryffindor 'seeker'
Moody, Alastor "Mad-Eye" - Ex-Auror Mad-Eye Moody is credited with filling half the cells in Azkaban with the many dark wizards he caught. A leader of the Advance Guard that helps Harry in his escape from the Dursley house to Twelve Grimmauld Place.
Podmore, Sturgis -wizard in the Advance Guard that helps Harry in his escape from the Dursley house to Twelve Grimmauld Place; did time in Azkaban
Shacklebolt, Kingsley - Auror, member of the Advance Guard that helped Harry escape from the Dursley house; eventually becomes Minister of Magic so is able to initiate reforms at the Ministry. Kingsley Shacklebolt's Patronus is a lynx.
Snape, Severus - Harry's Potions professor, Head of Slytherin House who remained under cover as a Death Eater to spy on Voldemort. Taught Harry displacement and insullation; delivered Harry's message so Order could intercept Death Eaters at the Ministry of Magic.
Tonks, Nymphadora - Auror, wife of Remus Lupin; she is the youngest member of the Order and does not like being called 'Nymphadora.' She joined the Advance Guard and helped Harry escape from the Dursley house to Twelve Grimmauld Place. After Sirius' death, her Patronus seems to have taken the shape of a wolf.
Vance, Emmeline - member of the Advance Guard that helps Harry in his escape from the Dursley house to Twelve Grimmauld Place
Weasley, Arthur - Weasley, Bill - Weasley, Charlie - Weasley, Molly [
The Weasley Tent]
Members in the Order of the Phoenix from 1970s
Bones, Edgar
Dearborn, Caradoc
Fenwick, Benjy
Longbottom, Frank and Alice
McKinnon, Marlene - Meadows, Dorcas
Pettigrew, Peter
Potter, Lily and James -
What really happened the night James and Lily were killed? - commentary
and timeline
Prewett, Gideon and Fabian
Weasley holiday celebration - time of renewal
T H E M A G I C A L P H O E N I X
The ability of birds to leave the earth and fly aloft toward the source of light has resulted in their being associated with aspiration, purity, and beauty. Wings were therefore often added to various terrene creatures in an effort to suggest transcendency. Because their habitat was among the branches of the sacred trees in the hearts of ancient forests, birds were also regarded as the appointed messengers of the tree spirits and Nature gods dwelling in these consecrated groves, and through their clear notes the gods themselves were said to speak. Many myths have been fabricated to explain the brilliant plumage of birds. A familiar example is the story of Juno's peacock, inn whose tail feathers were places the eyes of Argus. Numerous American Indian legends also deal with birds and thee origin of the various colors of feathers. The Navahos declare that when all living things climbed to the stalk of a bamboo to escape the Flood, the wild turkey was on the lowest branch and his tail feathers trailed in the water; hence the color was all washed out.
...As the dome of the heavens was likened to a skull in the Gothic Mysteries, so the birds which flew across the sky were regarded as thoughts of the Deity. For this reason Odin's two messenger ravens were called Hugin and Munin -- thought and memory.
Among the Greeks and Romans, the eagle was the appointed bird of Jupiter and consequently signified the swiftly moving forces of the Demiurgus; hence it was looked upon as the mundane lord of the birds, in contradistinction to the phoenix, which was symbolic of the celestial ruler.
...Both the peacock and the ibis were objects of veneration because they destroyed the poisonous reptiles which were popularly regarded as the emissaries of the infernal gods. Because of the myriad of eyes in the tail feathers the peacock was accepted as the symbol of wisdom, and on account of its general appearance it was often confused with the fabled phoenix of the Mysteries.
...Clement, one of the ante-Nicaean Fathers, describes, in the first century after Christ, the peculiar nature and habits of the phoenix, in this wise: "There is a certain bird which is called a Phoenix. This is the only one of its kind and lives five hundred years. And when the time of its dissolution draws near that it must die, it builds itself a nest of frankincense, and myrrh, and other spices, into which, when the time is fulfilled, it enters and dies. But as the flesh decays a certain kind of worm is produced which, being nourished by the juices of the dead bird, brings forth feathers. Then, when it has acquired strength, it takes up that nest in which are the bones of its parent, and bearing these it passes from the land of Arabia into Egypt, to the city called Heliopolis. And in open day, flying in the sight of all men, it places them on the altar of the sun, and having done this, hastens back to its former abode. The priests then inspect the registers of the dates, and find that it has returned exactly as the five hundredth year was completed."
...resemblance in shape between the phoenix and the eagle, a point which the reader should carefully consider, for it is reasonably certain that the modern Masonic eagle was originally a phoenix. The body of the phoenix is described as having been covered with glossy purple feathers, while its long tail feathers were alternately blue and red. Its head was light in color and about its neck was a circlet of golden plumage. At the back of its head the phoenix had a peculiar tuft of feathers, a fact quite evident, although it has been overlooked by most writers and symbolists.
...To the ancient mystics the phoenix was a most appropriate symbol of the immortality of the human soul for just as the phoenix was reborn out of its own dead self seven times seven, so again and again the spiritual nature of man rises triumphant from his dead physical body.
...European mysticism was not dead at the time the United States of America was founded. The hand of the Mysteries controlled in the establishment of the new government, for the signature of the Mysteries may still be seen on the Great Seal of the United States of America. Careful analysis of the seal discloses a mass of occult and Masonic symbols, chief among them the so-called American eagle -- a bird which Benjamin Franklin declared unworthy to be chosen as the emblem of a great, powerful, and progressive people. Here again only the student of symbolism can see through the subterfuge and realize that the American eagle upon the Great Seal is but a conventionalized phoenix, a fact plainly discernible from an examination of the original seal. In his sketch of The History of the Seal of the United States, Gaillard Hunt unwittingly brings forward much material to substantiate the belief that the original seal carried the phoenix bird on its obverse surface and the Great Pyramid of Gizeh upon its reverse surface. In a colored sketch submitted as a design for the Great Seal by William Barton in 1782, an actual phoenix appears sitting upon a nest of flames. This itself demonstrates a tendency toward the use of this emblematic bird."
-Manly P. Hall, Secret Teachings of All Ages
Sirius Black explains to Harry how his dysfunctional family
relationships caused him to move to the Potter household
Since Sirius was in Azkaban [the most infamous prisoner held there] from the time he was 22, Twelve Grimmauld Place sat empty for ten years, with only house elf Kreacher, "round the twist," to look after it. Regulus Black, Sirius' younger brother, died years earlier after having joined the Death Eaters. He was 'taken out' by Voldemort or on his orders. Regulus tried to extricate himself but got in too deep. When the house was donated as the headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix, Harry, Sirius, and the Weasleys spent the better part of a summer cleaning it out, with much still left to be done at the end.
PATTY of CHICKEN, BLACK MUSHROOMS and GRAPES
Ingredients:
· 4 prepared patty shells
· 2 cups boiled chicken, free of skin and bones, cut into 1/2 inch dice
· 4 large black dried mushrooms [Japanese forest mushrooms if possible]
· 1/2 cup seedless white grapes
· 3 TBS butter
· 2 TBS [1 oz.] brandy
· 3 TBS [1 1/2 ozs.] dry madeira
· 1/3 cup instant-dissolving flour
· 1/2 cup cold chicken broth
· 1/2 cup milk
· 1/4 cup light cream
· Salt, pepper, cayenne pepper
· 1 teaspoon tarragon vinegar
Directions:
Wash mushrooms. Cover with 1/2 cup boiling water. Let stand 1/2 hour. Save water in which mushrooms were soaked. Cut mushrooms into very thin slices. Melt butter in heavy saucepan over very low flame. Add chicken and mushrooms.
Saute evenly until chicken is well coated with butter and heated through; do not brown. Add brandy and set ablaze. Add madeira; blazing will continue briefly if flame is raised. Turn off flame.
In a mixing bowl, combine flour, chicken broth, milk and cream. Stir until flour dissolves. Add to pan with chicken. Bring to a boil. Add reserved liquid in which mushrooms were cooked. Reduce flame. Simmer very slowly 10 minutes. Stir occasionally; avoid excess stirring which breaks up chicken. Warm patty shells briefly in moderate oven if desired. Add grapes to chicken mixture. Simmer a few minutes, only until grapes are heated through. Add salt and pepper to taste and a dash of cayenne.
Remove from fire. Stir in vinegar. Spoon chicken into and around patty shells.
Kreacher's Treacle Tart
Harry Potter's Favourite
For the pastry:
170g plain flour
100g butter
1 tbsp caster sugar
1 egg yolk
cold water to bind
Preheat oven to 190C. Sift the flour into a bowl and then rub the butter in. Stir in the sugar. Mix the egg yolk with 2 tbsp cold water then add with a knife. Bring together into a disc and chill, wrapped in cling film, for 30 minutes. Roll out and transfer to a 20cm removable base tin. Line the sides with a bit of parchment as it often bubbles over and makes it very hard to remove cleanly. Chill in the fridge until hard. Bake blind for 15 minutes or until the edges are cooked, the remove the beans/paper and bake for another 5 minutes or until the bottom is golden.
For the filling:
500g golden syrup [Lyle's Golden Syrup]
125g breadcrumbs
zest and juice of a small-medium lemon
2 eggs
pinch ground ginger
3 tbsp double cream
Turn the oven down to 160C. Mix together all the ingredients in a bowl and pour into the tart case. Bake for 45 minutes or so, until the middle is fairly set. Add foil over the top to stop the pastry edges burning. Leave to cool before slicing and eating.
Serve with clotted cream or vanilla ice cream.
(Adapted from Leiths Cookery Bible (pastry) and Good Food Magazine
Totally Transylvanian: Garlic Grilled Cheese on Rye
midnight snack from Weasley kitchen cookbook: Charm Your Own Cheese
No vampire has a chance with the fragrant hit of garlic in these yummy sandwiches. Besides garlic in abundance, the sandwich has a zesty partnership of briny feta – sibling and soulmate to Rumanian brynza cheese—chopped onion, and a soft melting cheese, all sizzled atop rustic rye bread.
4 large, thick slices of sourdough rye bread
4 cloves garlic, halved
4-6 ounces feta cheese, thinly sliced or crumbled
2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives or green onion
About 6 ounces thinly sliced or shredded mild white melting cheese
such as Jack, medium Asiago, or Chaume
Directions
1. Preheat the broiler.
2. Lightly toast the bread on a baking sheet under the broiler. Rub both sides with garlic. Chop any leftover garlic and set it aside for a moment.
3. Lay the feta over the top of the garlic-rubbed toasts, sprinkle with leftover chopped garlic, then with chives, and top with the second cheese.
4. Broil until the cheese melts and sizzles, lightly browning in spots and the edges of the toast are crisp and brown.
5. Serve right away, hot and oozing.
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