If you’ve secretly longed to graduate from Hogwarts, Yale’s new Harry Potter exhibit and lectures can fulfill your dream. On loan from the U.S. National Library of Medicine, the exhibit called “Harry Potter’s World” includes a complementary lecture series, reported the Yale Daily News.
The exhibit features Renaissance science, magic, and medicine based on J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series. It’s so popular that Yale had to wait several years to showcase the material.
“It’s exciting that Harry Potter can be used to get people excited about medical history,” declared Elizabeth Bland, National Library of Medicine curator. “Especially given that rare books are not as immediately accessible.”
Topics include potions, monsters, herbology, magical creatures, fantastic beasts, and immortality, with each subject targeting its Harry Potter link, relationship to Renaissance magic and medicine, and associations in rare books. Bland complimented Rowling for using historical figures in her fictional books.
“[Rowling] tried to create a physical, visceral world based on both fictional and real people,” added Bland.
Examples include Paracelsus, who pioneered medical treatments during the Renaissance, and Nicolas Flamel, who was an alchemist.
Yale professors are also excited about the exhibit. Professor of Psychology Laurie Santos plans a lecture on magic and animal minds, while Katherine Hindley offers a course on magic, science, and medicine in the Middle Ages.
“I think these concepts were grounded in ‘science’ — it’s just that the system [of studying the world] was different,” explained Hindley. “I think it’s important to be reminded that longstanding and deeply held beliefs about the world can change.”
For those hoping that Harry Potter stars Emma Watson and Daniel Radcliffe will magically be conjured up during the exhibit or lectures, however, both actors are staying busy with films and other pursuits, as the Inquisitr reported.
For Radcliffe, going naked for his role in Equus served as a Hogwarts graduation. He also viewed it as an opportunity to showcase his ability to appear in adult films, added Daniel.
“Yup, I did three films last year and I got naked in all of them. I think getting naked on a stage gets rid of all your inhibitions.”
In turn, Emma has appeared in a variety of mature films, including The Bling Ring, below.
So just how much did J.K. Rowling, Daniel Radcliffe, and Emma Watson make from the boy wizard stories? Billions, reports Empty Lighthouse.
Rowling has become the world’s first author to have a net worth of $1 billion. Surpassing his co-actors, Radcliffe’s net worth is $110 million.
Watson, who played Hermione Granger, is worth $60 million. And Rupert Grint, who played Ron Weasley, has a net worth of $50 million.
[Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images]