By Grace Ann Brew
On July 31, 1997, a well-known wizard with a lightning bolt-shaped scar was born—on paper, of course. On this date, for the fourth summer in a row, the Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Museum welcomes all muggles, mudbloods, witches and wizards to celebrate Harry Potter’s birthday with a look into the real-world science behind J.K. Rowling’s magical world.
The museum will offer special tours from 3-7 p.m. during which visitors will explore the historical uses behind the ingredients found in Professor Snape’s classroom. The museum also boasts an array of samples for a more hands-on experience including dragon’s blood, mandrake root and valerian root.
Lauren Gleason, the museum’s site manager, says: “[Visitors] get pretty excited. The museum by itself is an amazing museum since it’s this big time capsule, then you add the Harry Potter aspect. It’s all original, and you really feel like you’ve gone back 100 to 150 years in time, and then you see dragon’s blood and wolfsbane. It really sparks the imagination.”
While ingredients such as dragon’s blood sound straight out of the pages of a fantasy novel, Gleason explains: “Dragon’s blood in real life is fat from the dragon tree, native to North Africa. Historically, its primary use was as red dye, but it also has some astringent qualities such as drying up phlegm. It was also used in tooth powder in the 18th and 19th centuries.”
Hooray for Books!, a local children’s bookstore, will be joining in on this bewitching experience by hosting trivia games outside the museum for those waiting in line. Once inside, visitors will get the chance to purchase Harry Potter-related trinkets from the bookstore as well. Leah Hapner, a part-time seller at Hooray for Books!, says, “The trivia really amps the kids up and gets them thinking about the different potions they will learn more about in the museum, so the kids get to see [the potions] from lots of different perspectives.”
Because the museum has seen such a large group of adults in attendance in past years, this year they have decided to host an adults-only party from 8-10 p.m. The museum will be serving herb-infused alcoholic beverages. They will also provide the opportunity for adults to make their own dragon’s blood tooth powder and discuss the beloved series and its historical roots.
Hapner believes fans should attend to experience the “renewal of Harry Potter.” “It’s fun to revisit it all again and see how much you remember,” she says.
Costumes are welcome, so pull out that box of old Halloween clothes from the back of your closet, dust off your Gryffindor robes (or Slytherin—we’re not judging), and join the Apothecary Museum in celebration of your favorite wizard’s birthday.
Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Museum
107 S. Fairfax St., Alexandria
Friday, July 31; family tours 3-7 p.m.; adult social 8-10 p.m.
Family tour $6; adult social $30
Advance purchase online strongly recommended. Tickets go on sale July 1
