Magical Drafts and Potions/Background

The History of Potions
References to potions in a magical context may be found as early as 330 BCE in Greece, where artists depicted the gods using wands and herbs to facilitate their plans. Over time, the benign legend of the Greek herbalist and apothecary, who harvested rare and powerful herbs to process through ritual into drinks and balms, morphed into the Roman view of a powerful, selfish entity who controlled underworld beings and natural/supernatural forces for their own gain.

As these stories gradually grew in the telling, witches, herbalists, and “wise women” came under fire for their perceived ties to dark deeds. Nevertheless, the remedies laid forth under Galen of Pergamum (who was credited on par with the famed Hippocrates) continued to serve as a foundation for extensive medical investigation far into the Middle Ages. Another popular potions text, Liber de Virtutibus Herbarium by Dioscorides, was translated and combined with other herbal treatises, a work today known as the Pseudo-Apuleius Complex in reference to an early translator or editor of the combined work.

Herbals based on these two works, considered by Muggle historians to be simply medical texts with plant-based remedies, were extremely popular in medieval courts, particularly as part of the brief Carolingian Renaissance. Other popular books included the Old English Herbal and the Antidotarium (both early 11th century).

Famous potioneers during this time period included Gregory the Smarmy, whose Unctuous Unction endeared him to Richard I, and Linfred of Stinchcombe, the founding patriarch of the Potter family, who managed to maintain a surprisingly friendly relationship with the Muggles in his village through the ruse of simple eccentricity while developing early prototypes of Skele-Gro and Pepperup Potions.

Concurrent with the influx of Islamic ideas in the 12th century related to previously-lost scientific texts, Potions enjoyed a rather explosive period of development after being tied to alchemy, which we understand to be the foundations of mundane chemistry and metallurgy. Due to the rise of charlatans and imitators, these fell out of favor by the end of the 14th century - which undoubtedly contributed to the alienation between magical and Muggle. Alchemy, of course, has become an advanced study in its own right, for which information we refer you to those texts preferred by the Hogwarts Professors of Alchemy.

Between 1400 and 1700, a mania for witch trials swept both Europe and the fledgling American colonies, but as this is most likely discussed in your History of Magic texts, we refer to it here exclusively to justify the relative lack of innovation in potions during this time as well as the absence of any prominent texts or potions masters outside of the Healing arts. A notable exception, of course, is Gunhilda de Gorsemoor (1556-1639), who discovered the cure for Dragon Pox. Only after the establishment of the Statute of Secrecy (1689-1692) were potioneers able to again practice their art in relative safety.

From the 18th century to the modern age, multiple prominent potioneers have arisen and significant advancements have occurred in the field. Among them are Hector Dagworth-Granger, founder of the Society of Potioneers; Arsenius Jigger, the original author of this manual and former professor at Hogwarts; Horace Slughorn, additionally a former professor at Hogwarts; and Hesper Starkey, who first elaborated on the effect of the phases of the moon in brewing.

Essential Brewing Equipment
The Muggles say, “A chef is only as good as their tools.” The same can be said for potioneers! During your career in potions, you will require extensive collections of knives, stirring rods, and other implements.

Knives
The most common forms of knives and their uses are as follows:

Chef's. This large all-purpose knife is used to julienne, dice, and finely chop ingredients. The size and weight take getting used to, but it can handle anything from herbs to dragon liver if you are skilled enough.

Paring. Paring knives are handy for small, delicate tasks like peeling garlic, trimming mushrooms, and slicing small fruits.

Utility. This medium-sized all-purpose knife is ideal for chopping most firm fruits and vegetables.

Boning. This knife is both very sharp and very thin and should be handled with extreme caution. It is useful for trimming fat and carving meat from bones; it may be sold with a flexible or rigid blade.

Serrated. This knife is commonly used in Muggle kitchens for bread, but the astute potioneer will recognize its potential when dealing with fragile fruits like the Shrivelfig. A serrated edge allows its wielder to easily slice through the outer skin without crushing the fragile interior.

Cleaver. This heavy, sharp knife is designed to sever muscle from bone or joint and is not sold to younger students due to their hotheadedness and its multiple combat applications.

Combination Grater/Peeler. This handheld utensil minimizes cuts when peeling or grating ingredients. We recommend it heartily to the serious student of potions.

Glassware
Glass or crystal vials are essential for the aspiring potioneer. Both are relatively inert, even when holding the most volatile of potions or the most corrosive of acids, and may be trusted to remain so for long periods of time.

Vials will generally be sold with their own stoppers, but may also be stoppered with corks or rubber plugs in an emergency if the potion is sufficiently weak."Beyond the ease and low cost with which it is made, and the fact that it can be made anywhere, glass is more delicate, clean, and attractive  than any material currently known to the world. It is very useful to the arts of distillation and spagyrics, not to mention indispensable to the preparation of medicines for man that would be nearly impossible to make without glass. ""Furthermore, many kinds of vessels and instruments are produced with it;   cucurbits,  alembics,  receivers,  pelicans,  lenses, retorts, antenitors,  condenser coils, vials, tiles, pouring-vessels (nasse),  ampules, philosophic eggs  and balls. Countless other types of glass vessels are invented every day to compose and produce elixirs, secret potions, quintessences, salts, sulfurs, vitriols, mercuries, tinctures, elemental separations, all metallic things, and many others that are discovered daily. ""Also, glass containers are made for aqua fortis and aqua regia, which are so essential for refiners (partitori) and masters of the prince’s mints to purify gold and silver and to bring them to perfection. So many benefits for the service of humanity come from glass, which seem nearly impossible to make without it. -Antonio Neri, L'Arte Vetraria, 1612"

Cauldrons
The astute student of potions will quickly notice that different cauldron compositions have noticeable effects on the brewing times of certain potions. The reason for this is closely related to the studies of metallurgy and alchemy; namely, the rate at which the various substances conduct magic throughout the cauldron. (Interestingly, mundane studies of similar materials have found analogous responses to electrical conductivity.)

Students most commonly brew using pewter cauldrons, an alloy of tin with either copper or lead added during casting - cauldron manufacturers prefer lead over copper because it slows the potion reaction and reduces overall volatility. However, the energy absorption inherent to lead also means student potions are weaker and slower-acting.

Advanced students may be recommended a bronze cauldron, an alloy of copper and zinc that increases both speed and efficacy while absorbing excess energy to mitigate the most volatile interactions. You should only attempt to brew in a copper cauldron if you have truly mastered the material and are observing all applicable safety regulations, since copper is one of the most conductive substances in the natural world - a potion brewed in a copper cauldron will be incredibly quick to brew and act, as well as extremely powerful. Potions Masters must be quite precise in their ingredient preparation, timing, and stirring to imbue the correct amount of magic into a potion brewed in a copper cauldron.

While cauldrons of other substances have been found to work, these are generally on a per-potion basis and ought not to be casually experimented with. The average witch or wizard will continue to use their Hogwarts pewter cauldron for the rest of their lives with few negative repercussions.

Potions Ingredients
The ingredients from which potions are derived have been a source of conflict between mundane and Wizarding civilizations for thousands of years. The current Muggle interpretation dates back to two prominent physicians from the first century B.C.E. The first, Galen, was a representative of the temple of Asclepius, the Greek god of medicine from whom the symbol of a snake-mounted staff is derived; his work was referenced far into the middle ages, and he was viewed as an equal to the infamous Hippocrates.

Dioscorides, the other, authored De Materia Medica, the first discussion of herbal remedies in recorded Western history. According to both, the naming of “exotic” ingredients, e.g. brains and blood, was a complex code to conceal the true recipes from the uninitiated and curious. This was, of course, an extremely clever ruse perpetuated by Renaissance-era Wix to avoid the attention of the Inquisition.

Ingredient Preparation
 The Julienne Cut 

Originally from France, the Julienne reduces an ingredient to matchstick-sized slices. For tubular shapes, slice into 2- to 3-inch long segments, then reduce to rectangular shapes by slicing away nonconforming sections. Slice the resulting rectangles into ⅛-inch-thick slices, and after re-stacking the slices, cut again at ⅛ inch intervals to recreate original rectangles. For a leaf or herb requiring a julienne, simply roll the flat shape into a tube and slice in ⅛ inch intervals to create flat, even strips.

 Obtaining Juices and Secretions 

Depending on the consistency of the ingredient in question, fluids may be obtained one of several ways. The first and most common is to simply peel the ingredient and squeeze over a bowl, but the second method - more useful for ingredients with less juice to begin with - requires chopping, grinding, or grating the ingredient and straining the resulting mush through multiple layers of cheesecloth. This author advises you to consult with your local potioneers, apothecaries, or herbalists on which ingredients require which method to maximize effectiveness.

 Grinding and Grating 

The astute student will notice that judicious application of the mortar and pestle is called for in nearly every potion. For dried ingredients, grinding into a powder or paste (whether coarse or fine) appears to be accepted as the most effective way to distribute the essence of the ingredient throughout the mixture quickly and evenly. Remember the difference between powdering something and reducing it to a fine powder! A powder is simply a a well ground ingredient; when you think of powders, think of granulated sugar. A fine powder, however, takes far more effort because the ingredient must be repeatedly ground and sifted, e.g. flour.