The Weasleys Didn't Waste 700 Galleons on Egypt

A Travel Voucher That Can't Be Cashed: The Weasleys' 700 Galleons

In the upper left corner of an old Daily Prophet: "Enter now to win the grand prize, a one-night trip to Transylvania!" Another: "Win a weekend stay for two and experience 'Climbing Beasts' in the relaxing surroundings of Romania!" These newspapers, displayed at the Harry Potter Studio Tour in Tokyo, show what the contest actually offered. The grand prize was travel, not cash.

The 700 Galleons the Weasleys won in 1993 were a travel voucher. A Portkey, accommodation, a guided tour of the pyramids, perhaps camel rides and a visit to Gringotts' Egyptian branch. You win, you go. Don't go, you break the terms. Cash it out? The planning department would tell you: Mr. Weasley, this is a travel prize. You cannot deposit it at Gringotts.

The front desk froze. Arthur went to claim the prize and asked, "Family? We have seven children, plus Great-Aunt Muriel, and a distant cousin who's a Squib. Can they come?" The clerk put the quill back in the inkwell and consulted a superior. The superior said family included only the head of household, spouse, and minor children. Arthur nodded. "All right, then. The second eldest can pay his own way. Cover me, my wife, and the five youngest. Seven hundred Galleons total. Thanks."

So not going on the trip was not an option.

Suppose the Daily Prophet allowed cash. If the 700 Galleons went back to the Burrow, where would they go? Ron's wand was broken: seven Galleons. Ginny's textbooks were secondhand, a few Galleons. The twins' prank supplies were never enough. Percy needed new quills and a briefcase. Bill needed curse-breaking tools in Egypt. Charlie needed fireproof gloves in Romania. The roof leaked. Gnomes were causing trouble in the garden. Molly's cauldron was twenty years old. Arthur's Ford Anglia needed parts. Seven hundred Galleons poured into a family of nine, clinked a few times, and were gone. A month later, no one remembered the money had been there.

The Weasleys didn't need to save for a bride price. When Fleur married Bill, she didn't ask for thirty million Silver Sickles, nor did she make Bill buy a house in Hogsmeade and add her name. The magical world had Floo powder and Portkeys. No need to buy a car. No need to save for retirement. Arthur was a Ministry civil servant. His pension and medical care came from the Ministry. No need to save for serious illness. St Mungo's had Artifact Accidents, Creature-Induced Injuries, Magical Bugs, Potion and Plant Poisoning, and Spell Damage. Muggle hospitals drain savings for cancer and organ disease. St Mungo's did not have those bills. Dumbledore was born in 1881. When Harry started school, he was a hundred and ten, able to fight Voldemort and look thirty or forty. Hogwarts didn't charge tuition. Tom Riddle came to school from an orphanage, poor as a church mouse. Harry's first trip to Platform Nine and Three-Quarters required no ticket. No one checked tickets on the train. At school, Professor McGonagall didn't chase anyone for tuition. Meals appeared. Lodging was free. Clothes were handed down from brothers. Molly knitted sweaters. Ron's pet and wand were his brothers'. Many textbooks were secondhand too. The extras that cost money were Lockhart's complete set and the Monster Book of Monsters Hagrid assigned. For these, money had already been taken from the prize to buy a new wand.

After all the calculations, there was no hole that had to be plugged with seven hundred Galleons.

The Weasleys lacked time and ease. Arthur's time was scarce. He worked in the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office, mocked by colleagues, loving Muggle objects but forbidden to own them. His holidays were few. Molly's smile was scarce. She had borne seven children in eleven years without stopping. Every day she fed nine mouths, mended a dozen robes, dealt with garden gnomes, and worried the twins had turned someone into a canary again. The whole family in one frame was rare. Bill was in Egypt, Charlie in Romania, Percy at Hogwarts, the twins causing trouble, Ron feeling inferior, Ginny in a corner. The Burrow had empty chairs.

Seven hundred Galleons could buy new wands, new books, roof repairs, a new cauldron. It could not buy back Arthur's holiday, Molly's ease, or seven children appearing in one photograph at the same time.

Egypt could.

Bill was a curse-breaker for Gringotts in Egypt. The trip was a family visit. Arthur and Molly could see where their eldest son worked, whether he was safe, whether he ate properly. Owls were slow. Apparition was too far. The children also got a look at careers. Charlie saw Romanian dragons. Bill showed Egyptian curses. Percy grew interested in international affairs. The twins found prank inspiration in the pyramids. Ron, on the Nile, felt for the first time that he was not inferior to his brothers. Back at Hogwarts, Ron had something to talk about: "My brother works in Egypt, he saved Ginny, and we went to the pyramids." He was no longer just Harry Potter's poor friend.

When a girl from a low-income family goes to see her idol, the controversy is this: the poor must always be miserable, every penny spent on essentials. What counts as essentials? Rice, flour, oil, tuition, medical bills. Once those are covered, seeing a concert, buying a ticket, is dignity and happiness. The Weasleys were the same. They were poor, but not so poor that they had to turn seven hundred Galleons into bread. The children ate and stayed in school. They got treatment when they needed it. A family trip was a rebellion against a life of poverty.

After the war, Fred died. Lupin died. Tonks died. Colin died. The Weasleys lost much. In a kitchen drawer at the Burrow, the Egypt album was still there. Its corners curled. In the photos, Bill stood in sunlight. Charlie had sent a dragon postcard. Percy took notes. The twins made faces before the Sphinx. Ron and Ginny squinted. Molly opened it. The kettle whistled. She went to turn off the stove. The album stayed by the stove.