Dark Mark
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Dark Mark, in the Harry Potter book series, is the symbol of Lord Voldemort and the Death Eaters. Its appearance is that of a skull with a snake coming out of the mouth in place of the tongue. It is summoned using the incantation "Morsmordre" (Latin:"take a bite out of death"). While unknown at the time, the summoning of the basilisk by Tom Riddle in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets may have been the inspiration for the Dark Mark. The basilisk emerged from the mouth of the statue of Salazar Slytherin in the Chamber of Secrets.
Contents |
[edit] Appearances
[edit] In the Sky
The Dark Mark is cast by a Death Eater whenever he or she has murdered someone, generally cast in the sky over the building in which the murder occurred. A Death Eater named Gibbon cast the Dark mark over Hogwarts the night Draco Malfoy let a group of Death Eaters into Hogwarts in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. It first appeared in the Harry Potter books during the Quidditch World Cup. During the celebration after the Quidditch match, a group of former Death Eaters attacked groups of Muggles, but scattered at the appearance of the Dark Mark, having been cast by Bartemius Crouch Jr.
[edit] On Death Eaters
The Dark Mark appears as a brand on the forearms of all Death Eaters. The mark serves as a connection between Lord Voldemort and each of his followers. He uses the mark to summon the Death Eaters to him by touching one mark, causing it to burn and change colour. The Dark Mark on every Death Eater burns as well, alerting them to Lord Voldemort's summons. During his years out of power, the marks remained unseen on the arms of its bearers, but became progressively clearer and more pronounced as Voldemort's strength increased, throughout the fourth book. In the book, the Dark Mark is described as "what looked like a vivid red tattoo" which, when touched by Voldemort "burns black," where as the movies show the mark as solid black, even when touched by Lord Voldemort.
[edit] Derivatives
- In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Hermione Granger creates fake galleons (gold coins) for the members of Dumbledore's Army. They display the date and time of the next meeting in lieu of a serial number and become warm whenever a change has been made. Later, Hermione tells Harry that she got the idea from Voldemort summoning his Death Eaters by using their Dark Mark tattoos.
- Fred and George Weasley created an edible version of this symbol as part of their products in the "Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes" store in Diagon Alley, which could sicken people if eaten.
