Hufflepuff's Cup

• Type: Horcrux, Founder's Heirloom
• Owners: Helga Hufflepuff, Hepzibah Smith, Lord Voldemort, Bellatrix Lestrange, Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger
• Maker: Helga Hufflepuff

Hufflepuff's Cup is described as a small, magical golden cup with two finely-wrought handles. Its most prominent feature is an engraving of a badger, the emblem of Hufflepuff House. When Harry Potter first saw it in a memory, it was described as gleaming brightly. As a Horcrux, it did not exhibit any outward signs of the dark magic it contained.

The cup's original magical properties are not explicitly detailed in the novels. Its owner, Hepzibah Smith, boasted that it possessed “all sorts of powers,” though this claim was never substantiated and may have been an expression of her pride in owning a Founder's heirloom. The cup's primary and most significant magical property was its status as one of Lord Voldemort's Horcruxes. By performing a murder and using the appropriate dark spell, Voldemort encased a fragment of his soul within the cup, granting him a form of immortality. This enchantment also rendered the cup extremely durable, making it immune to most forms of magical or physical damage. It could only be destroyed by substances or magic powerful enough to overcome Horcrux enchantments, such as Basilisk venom or Fiendfyre. In the Lestrange Vault at Gringotts, the cup was protected by powerful curses, including the Gemino Curse and the Flagrante Curse, which caused any object touched by a thief to multiply rapidly and burn red-hot.

The cup was the property of Helga Hufflepuff, one of the four founders of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. It was passed down through her lineage for centuries, eventually coming into the possession of Hepzibah Smith, a wealthy, elderly witch who was a distant descendant of Hufflepuff. In the mid-20th century, Tom Riddle, then working for the dark arts shop Borgin and Burkes, learned of the cup's existence. He visited Hepzibah under the guise of his charming demeanor and she, proud of her collection, showed him both Hufflepuff's Cup and Slytherin's Locket. Two days later, Riddle murdered Hepzibah, magically altered the memory of her House-Elf, Hokey, to make her confess to accidentally poisoning her mistress, and stole both heirlooms. Riddle used the murder of Hepzibah Smith to transform the cup into his third Horcrux. Believing it would be safest in a location of great security, he later entrusted the cup to one of his most loyal followers, Bellatrix Lestrange. She stored it deep within her family vault at Gringotts Wizarding Bank in Diagon Alley.

The cup is first introduced in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, when Albus Dumbledore shows Harry the memory of Hokey the House-Elf in the Pensieve. From this, they deduce that the cup was stolen by Lord Voldemort and was a likely candidate for a Horcrux. In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Harry realizes the cup must be hidden in the Lestrange Vault after observing Bellatrix's terrified reaction to the possibility that the Sword of Gryffindor had been taken from her vault. With the reluctant help of the Goblin Griphook, Harry, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger (disguised as Bellatrix via Polyjuice Potion) successfully break into Gringotts. They retrieve the cup after navigating the vault's treacherous curses and escape from the bank on the back of a blind Ukrainian Ironbelly dragon. The cup is destroyed during the Battle of Hogwarts. Knowing that a Basilisk fang is imbued with venom powerful enough to destroy Horcruxes, Ron and Hermione enter the Chamber of Secrets. There, Hermione uses a fang from the Basilisk's skeleton to stab the cup. The piece of Voldemort's soul within is destroyed, bringing the trio one step closer to defeating him. This shared act of bravery leads directly to Ron and Hermione's first kiss.

• In the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2, the destruction of the cup is visually depicted with a black, ghostly manifestation of Lord Voldemort screaming as it emerges from the cup before dissolving. This is a cinematic addition not present in the book. (film)
• The film also enhances the effect of the Gemino Curse and Flagrante Curse in the Lestrange Vault, showing the treasure multiplying into a massive, suffocating tide of burning-hot objects, a more dramatic representation than the book's description. (film)