Antioch Peverell was the eldest among the three brothers in the Tale of the Three Brothers. Cadmus Peverell and Ignotus Peverell were his younger brothers. Antioch, Cadmus, and Ignotus were all highly skilled in the magical arts and were considered by many to be the creators of each Deathly Hallow themselves. According to Albus Dumbledore, the tale was probably just a metaphor for how the three brothers lost their way after creating the Hallows rather than Death itself giving them these Deathly Hallows. Antioch Peverell was the first owner of the Elder Wand. It was considered by most witches and wizards who believed the myth to be the most powerful wand in the world. Antioch Peverell lived in the thirteenth century and died before the beginning of the fourteenth century. He was buried next to his brothers in Godric’s Hollow.
Antioch’s Life
Antioch Peverell was born either in the 12th or 13th century to his parents in the Peverell family which was one of the most prestigious wizarding families in England. It is very likely that Antioch Peverell was born in Godric’s Hollow, as he was later buried there after his death. He had two younger brothers named Cadmus and Ignotus. He was, therefore, a distant relative of both Tom Riddle and Harry Potter, as Tom was the descendant of Cadmus Peverell and Harry was the descendant of Ignotus Peverell.
The Tale of the Three Brothers
Antioch Peverell is mostly known in the wizarding community for being one of the three brothers in the Tale of the Three Brothers, which is a story from the wizarding world. It appears in the Tales of Beedle the Bard. In this story, three brothers come across Death himself when they are crossing a river. Despite the river’s strong currents, the brothers conjure a bridge using their magic, and this surprises Death, who presents himself before them. Death then hatches a cunning plot and decides to reward all three of them for their skill.
The eldest brother, Antioch, asked for an all-powerful wand that would make him invincible. Death presented him with an elder wand he made out of an elder tree nearby. The second brother asked for something that would bring a woman he once loved back from the dead. Death gave him the Resurrection Stone which would bring back anyone he wanted back from the dead. The third brother asked for something that would keep him invisible from anything, and Death gave him a piece of his Invisibility Cloak, which became an invisibility cloak in itself.
Antioch’s Death
After the Peverell brothers received their gifts from Death, they parted ways. Antioch went to an inn where he had a quarrel with another wizard and finally dueled with him and defeated him using his superior Elder Wand. He then boasted about the prowess of his new wand in the inn, which cost his life. That night while he was sleeping in the inn, another wizard who had his eyes on the Elder Wand came to his room, slit his throat, and took away the Elder Wand for himself.
However, this version of Antioch’s death comes from the Tale of the Three Brothers. It is not known if this is what actually happened or if it was just a tale based on the Peverell brothers, and his death happened due to natural causes. According to Albus Dumbledore, it was more likely that the Peverell brothers themselves created the Deathly Hallows, which comprised the Elder Wand, the Resurrection Stone, and the Invisibility Cloak. However, even if this were the case, it is possible that Antioch’s death happened in a similar fashion as the Elder Wand passed through several different wizards and witches over generations, and it was probably first stolen from Antioch by a thief who may have killed him in the process.
The Elder Wand
The Elder Wand, which was owned by Antioch Peverell, was believed to be the most powerful wand in existence. According to the Tale of the Three Brothers, the wand was given to Antioch by Death himself. However, Albus Dumbledore believed that the creator of the wand was Antioch himself and that the story was just a myth surrounding the creation of the Deathly Hallows by the Peverell brothers. The wand has exchanged several hands over the generations.
After the thief who slit Antioch’s throat stole the Elder Wand from his possession, it is not known where the wand next ended up. It is possible that it was with the thief for a long while or it may have exchanged hands after duels with other wizards or witches. Given the nature of the wand to be loyal only to worthy wizards and witches who won the wand, there is a strong chance that the thief did not possess the Elder Wand for long as he had stolen it from Antioch Peverell after dishonorably killing him.
The wand was in possession of the European wandmaker Gregorovitch before it was stolen by a boy who was later revealed to be the Dark Wizard Gellert Grindelwald. After Grindelwald, the wand changed hands and, for a long time, belonged to Albus Dumbledore. Dumbledore won this wand from Grindelwald after he defeated the latter in a historic duel that happened in 1945. After Dumbledore’s death, the wand was buried with him but was eventually stolen from his grave by Lord Voldemort. Voldemort had to research a lot before he was told by an old Grindelwald that the wand was with Dumbledore.
However, Voldemort never became the rightful owner of the Elder wand because Draco Malfoy was the last person to cast a spell against Albus Dumbledore when he was in possession of the wand, and he died immediately after when Snape cast the Killing Curse at him. Despite Voldemort killing Snape just so that he could become the rightful owner of the wand, he never owned it. After Harry disarmed Malfoy in the Malfoy Manor, the wand was loyal to Harry.
The Personification of Death
In the Tale of the Three Brothers, Death is an actual character personified for literary effect. This is a common trope even in Muggle literature and mythology. There are several instances where Death is personified and takes an anthropomorphic form. A personified version of death and deities that are considered the gods and goddesses of death are found all across most mythologies like the Aztec, Hindu, Abrahamic, Buddhist, Egyptian and European mythologies. Even modern literary works sometimes use the Grim Reaper and other literary tropes to personify death.
FAQs
Is Voldemort related to Antioch Peverell?
Yes, Lord Voldemort was a distant relative of Antioch Peverell. Antioch Peverell was the eldest among the three Peverell brothers and his younger brother Cadmus Peverell was an ancestor of the Gaunt family and Merope Gaunt, to whom Tom Riddle or Lord Voldemort was born. The Gaunt Ring, which was a family artifact of the Gaunts, belonged to Cadmus Peverell and contained the Resurrection Stone within it.
Is Dumbledore related to Antioch Peverell?
It is not known if Dumbledore was related to Antioch Peverell. It is possible that Albus Dumbledore was a distant relative of Antioch Peverell, as they were both from Godric’s Hollow. Actually, Dumbledore’s family moved to Godric’s Hollow after his father, Percival Dumbledore, was sent to Azkaban, but it is still possible that they had some family ties in Godric’s Hollow. Furthermore, despite being explicitly stated, it is still possible for Antioch Peverell and Albus Dumbledore to be relatives, as most witches and wizards were related to each other through distant and generational ties.
Who are the descendants of Antioch Peverell?
It is possible that Antioch Peverell did not have any descendants if the events of the Tale of the Three Brothers actually turned out to be true. According to the story, unlike his younger brothers, Antioch Peverell died immediately after they received their gifts from Death. Antioch Peverell dueled another wizard in a place he visited and was killed and robbed of his Elder Wand by another wizard. It is possible that Antioch Peverell had no children at that time, and therefore, it is very likely that he had no descendants.
