Pottermore Releases Original J.K. Rowling Sketches

Now that we’re all eagerly awaiting J.K. Rowling’s upcoming series of short stories from Hogwarts, why not take a look back at the early days of Harry Potter? Entertainment Weekly reports that, much like Hogwarts itself, Rowling’s digital publishing company Pottermore has been hiding some pretty amazing treasures throughout the many mysterious rooms and winding corridors of its website. In fact, a series of previously unpublished drawings by J.K. Rowling have apparently been hiding in plain view on different parts of the Pottermore website.

The three illustrations, which were discovered by The Rowling Library, were created by Rowling long ago, when she was writing Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, the first book in the Harry Potter series. The detailed sketches depict Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Severus Snape as Rowling originally imagined them. The Rowling Library notes that, in addition to the three unpublished images, Pottermore also published higher-quality versions of four already known images (which can be seen here).

In one unpublished image, Harry and his friends peer up at the mischievous ghost Peeves as he hovers overhead wearing a bow-tie, tweed suit, and what appears to be a nightcap. In another, a sinister-looking Snape paces his classroom as Ron and Harry toil on a boiling potion. And in the final illustration, Rowling diagrams a game of quidditch, labeling keepers, seekers, beaters, and chasers as they chase after snitches, bludgers, and quaffles. Together, the illustrations provide a unique glimpse into Rowling’s vision of the world of Harry Potter long before the books were published and the movies cast.

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