Ravenclaw is easily the most interesting house in all of Hogwarts. Sorry, Gryffindors. Those who reside in the blue and bronze living spaces of the castle simply have the most to offer. Not only are Ravenclaws in the Harry Potter series praised for their admirable intellect, but they also cherished for their eccentric personas and highly imaginative minds. Sounds like the coolest Hogwarts house to us! And the coolest Hogwarts house deserves the coolest common room, there is no doubt about it. But what are some fascinating things you probably didn’t know about the Ravenclaw common room? Let us give you a tour of the best room in all of Hogwarts, so you can find out for yourself!
10. INSIDE IS A STATUE OF ROWENA RAVENCLAW
Rowena Ravenclaw is still heavily honored in the house of wisdom even centuries after her demise. Born in Scotland, she was praised by many as one of the brightest witches of her time (making her the OG Hermione.) Our girl Rowena Ravenclaw was best friends with Helga Hufflepuff, a fellow founder of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Rowena is rumored to be the brilliant woman who created the floorplan of the castle that Harry, Ron, and Hermione would one day call home. Not only was she wildly intelligent, but she was also immensely creative. It is no surprise that these are all traits honored by students in the house of Ravenclaw.
9. IT HOLDS A REPLICA OF THE LOST DIADEM
The lost diadem is a “colorless tiara” that possesses much more value to it than glistening beauty and indications of status. For one, it is a Horcrux, so it is necessary to obtain in order to kill The Dark Lord once and for all. It is also wildly powerful because it is said that those who wear the crown are granted wisdom beyond belief. This is why the diadem is so sought after because of all the power it contains for those lucky enough to wear it. In the Ravenclaw common room, this tiara rests on Rowena Ravenclaw’s statue, although the real one is hidden inside the room of requirement. (At least it was before HP destroyed it.)
8. THERE IS A LOT OF HISTORY WITH THE DIADEM
The statue of Rowena Ravenclaw does not just stand in the Ravenclaw common room for aesthetic purposes. There is a whole lot of history behind what you are seeing as you gaze upon the statue. Rowena herself had enchanted the diadem so those who’d wear it would automatically obtain more wisdom. Because of all the power it possesses, many people wanted to snatch that tiara and wear it as their own. Of course, they would. Who wouldn’t want to hold that kind of knowledge?
Jealous of her mother’s constant attention and intellect, Rowena’s daughter Helena Ravenclaw made the choice to betray her mother and steal the crown for herself. She decided to hide the crown in a tree in an Albanian forest so no one else would be able to find it. She was then killed by the Bloody Baron (who was then just the Baron) after she wouldn’t return with him back to Hogwarts. Shocked and disgusted by what he had done, the Baron had then stabbed himself as well, thus making him the Bloody Baron.
7. THE HISTORY OF THE DIADEM GETS EVEN DARKER
A bunch of people fighting to their death over a crown? Sounds like an episode of Game of Thrones to us! As it turns out, Helena Ravenclaw wasn’t the only person other than her mother who desired possession of the enchanted crown. Things took a turn for the worst when Lord Voldemort, who was then of course known as Tom Riddle, managed to get the whereabouts of the lost diadem out of Helena’s ghost. Once he found out this information, he sought after the tiara himself which was hidden in the tree of the forest just as he suspected. He then took the diadem and hid it inside of the room of requirement where Harry later found it and destroyed it.
With this knowledge, perhaps no one in the house of Ravenclaw could look at that statue inside the common room again without considering the dark history behind it.
6. THE STRANGE WAY TO GET INTO THE COMMON ROOM
Ravenclaws are wildly unique as a Hogwarts house, requiring intellectual stimulation at any given turn. Perhaps the wisest house in all of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Ravenclaws have an eccentrically captivating way of entering their common room. In order to get in, they must answer a riddle being told by the door knocker which is shaped like an eagle. You know, the usual way to get into your house instead of just using a password or a key. You best be sure to know the answer to the riddle unless you want to sleep outside for the night!
Rowena Ravenclaw was known for being strict, but isn’t forcing a bunch of kids to solve riddles in order to get some sleep a little too harsh, Row? Maybe it’s just us, but we think the answer is yes.
5. GETTING INTO THE COMMON ROOM IS NO EASY TASK
When we said in the previous slide that you need to solve a riddle in order to get access to the common room, what we didn’t tell you was how outrageously challenging these riddles really are. Seriously. These aren’t just the riddles that you used to pass along to your friends on the playground. These are riddles that require deep intellectual and creative thought that not just anyone can solve. Answering these riddles requires a very specific mindset, one akin to that of Luna Lovegood.
4. THE COMMON ROOM FORCES YOU TO LEARN
As we stated earlier, we think it’s a bit harsh for the common room to be designed so you have to answer a riddle in order to get in. Yet as Luna states in The Deathly Hallows when she and Harry are trying to get into the Ravenclaw common room, if you don’t get the answer to the riddle right, you must wait for someone else to come and answer it for you. (That would suck for the last person to enter the common room for the night!). This way, as Luna states, you get to learn from your mistakes. Although the thought behind this is beautiful, in real life it seems a bit daunting and time-consuming. Yet to Ravenclaws, there is always time to learn something new. (As inspiring as it is, we’d probably prefer to just have a password to get in.)
“At once the beak of the eagle opened, but instead of a bird’s call, a soft, musical voice said, ‘which came first, the phoenix or the flame?’”
Luna: “I think the answer is that a circle has no beginning.”
“Well reasoned,” said the voice, and the door swung open.
3. THE MOST ECCENTRIC WIZARDS HAVE RESIDED INSIDE
We already know that most Ravenclaws are extremely quirky and creative, but not everyone knows exactly which brilliantly odd wizards and witches were accepted into the House of Ravenclaw. The list goes on and on, including Garrick Ollivander (who is known to be the world’s most talented wandmaker,) Sybill Trelawney (who may be a bit of a nut, but she’s our nut,) Moaning Myrtle (the ghost chick who finds solace inside toilets), and of course, Luna Lovegood (who blames everything on the nargles.) All are equally eccentric in the best way possible, making us love Ravenclaw even more than ever before. It is no doubt that Rowena Ravenclaw would’ve been proud of all the students who have slept inside her house.
2. THE COMMON ROOM REVEALS A LOT ABOUT WIZARDS IN GENERAL
As Hermione points out in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, most wizards tend to rely on their magical abilities more heavily than their intellect. They tend to place skill over wisdom, which many Ravenclaws can’t help but frown upon. To Ravenclaws, knowledge is a power that is stronger than any magical spell, so it makes sense that they would prefer to solve a riddle to get inside their living space rather than casting a spell any old wizard could do with the right skillset.
Many people are left scratching their heads as to why Hermione was put into Gryffindor rather than Ravenclaw, considering her hunger for knowledge. Perhaps this has everything to do with making the plot less difficult considering how close Harry, Ron, and Hermione are. Placing them all into the same house with the same common room seems to make things easier overall, so we can’t really blame Rowling for making this choice.
1. IT IS THE MOST DREAMY ROOM IN HOGWARTS
It’s a shame that we don’t get to see the Ravenclaw Common Room as often as we’d like, considering the fact that it is arguably the most gorgeously designed room in the entire enchanted castle. It has been described as the airiest room in Hogwarts, with breathtakingly gorgeous scenery. Of course, it is mainly royal blue in color followed by rich bronze hues that mark the notable colors of Ravenclaw. There is a marvelous painting of the night sky that illuminates from above and reflects on the carpet. From beyond the windows, you get a gorgeous view or the mountains, along with the lake, the quidditch pitch, and the forbidden forest. There is a rather large bookshelf in the common room, which is no surprise considering how Ravenclaw is home to the bookworms.
Honestly, we couldn’t imagine a better house at Hogwarts.
