Description
A small golden cup with two finely wrought handles, engraved with a badger — the symbol of Hufflepuff House. It gleams with an almost supernatural lustre, untarnished despite its immense age. Originally belonging to Helga Hufflepuff, one of The Hogwarts Founders, the cup was said to possess unique magical properties before being corrupted into a vessel for a fragment of Tom Riddle’s soul.
History
The cup was one of the few surviving personal artefacts of Helga Hufflepuff, and it was treasured by collectors of magical antiquities for centuries. By the mid-20th century, it had come into the possession of Hepzibah Smith, a wealthy and elderly witch who was a direct descendant of Hufflepuff and an avid collector of rare magical objects.
Tom Riddle, then a young man working at Borgin and Burkes in Knockturn Alley, cultivated a calculated friendship with Hepzibah Smith. He charmed and flattered her over a period of time, gaining her trust and access to her collection. When she showed him her two most prized possessions — the cup and Slytherin’s Locket — Riddle saw his opportunity.
Riddle murdered Hepzibah using poison and modified her house-elf Hokey’s memory to make the elf believe she had accidentally poisoned her mistress. He then stole both the cup and the locket. Riddle used Hepzibah’s death to create his fourth Horcrux, sealing a fragment of his soul within the cup.
The cup was entrusted to Bellatrix Lestrange, one of Voldemort’s most devoted followers, who stored it in the high-security Lestrange vault at Gringotts Wizarding Bank. It was eventually retrieved and destroyed during the Battle of Hogwarts.
Properties
- Soul vessel: Contains a fragment of Tom Riddle’s soul, functioning as a Horcrux.
- Original enchantment: The cup was believed to possess magical properties in its original state, though the exact nature of Hufflepuff’s enchantment has been lost to history.
- Gringotts protections: While stored in the Lestrange vault, the cup was further protected by the formidable security of Gringotts Wizarding Bank, including a Gemino Curse (multiplying duplicates) and a Flagrante Curse (searing heat on contact).