To mere Muggles, it may seem strange that there are still mysteries to unravel from the Harry Potter series, nine years after the last book was published. But those fully immersed in the world of J.K. Rowling will never cease to examine and re-examine her genius. Which is how one astute fan has just uncovered a fascinating Easter egg, that may or may not have been intentionally placed in the series and movie franchise. It's a connection between the horrible Dursley family and the three Deathly Hallows.
Reddit user iShootWithaCamera shared his theory that the three pitiful Christmas gifts Harry Potter's aunt and uncle sent him while he was at Hogwarts could be interpreted as some pretty serious symbols. In his first year, he received a 50-cent piece, "a representation of the Resurrection Stone." In his second year, they very generously sent him a toothpick, which, not so obviously until now, stands in for the Elder Wand. And his fourth-year gift, a tissue, is — haven't you guessed by now? — the Invisibility Cloak.
"Could this be a coincidence?" iShootWithaCamera asks. "Maybe, but given the detail JKR put into the series, it wouldn't surprise me that she planned this, if even subconsciously."
So wait, does that mean that the Dursleys were part of some plot to get the magical objects into Harry's possession? Or were the gifts a metaphor for the relative emptiness of consumer culture in the face of Harry's responsibilities to all of mankind? Er, don't get carried away there, English majors. The conversation on Reddit following this observation is pretty fun to follow, though. Let's wait and see if Ms. Rowling herself weighs in on this discovery.