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"Shouldn'ta lost me temper, but it didn't work, anyway. Meant ter turn him into a pig, but I suppose he was so much like a pig anyway there wasn't much left ter do."
Rubeus Hagrid on his attempt to turn Dudley Dursley into a pig[src]

This spell (incantation unknown) was used to transform a human target into a pig.[1]

History[]

The witch Circe was fond of using this spell to turn sailors into pigs in ancient Greece.[2][3]

On 31 July 1991, Rubeus Hagrid, despite being forbidden to perform magic, attempted to transfigure Dudley Dursley into a pig, after his father Vernon Dursley had crudely insulted Albus Dumbledore at the Hut-on-the-Rock, but only managed to give him a tail.[1]

Known practitioners[]

Behind the scenes[]

  • In an early script for the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry threatened to use this spell on Dudley once again when Dudley and his gang tormented Harry near the film's start.[4]
  • Hagrid mentions that he tried to turn Dudley into a pig, but supposes that it did not work because he was already too much like a pig. Provided Hagrid was not simply joking to amuse Harry after successfully, purposefully giving Dudley a pig's tail in order to humiliate him, this might be an instance of Hagrid's magic not working fully, due to his snapped wand. It is also possible that Hagrid was not skilled enough, as Human Transfiguration is a very difficult branch of transfiguration.
    • In the film, however, he never mentions that he tried to turn Dudley into a pig.
  • It is unknown if this spell is specifically to turn humans into pigs, or if it could turn any creature into a pig. It may be even be the same spell Professor Minerva McGonagall used to turn her desk into a pig. If it is, this means that it can also be used on inanimate objects.

Appearances[]

Notes and references[]

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