The White Witch's Wand was an instrument of great but terribly dark magic. It was owned by Jadis, who used it during her reign and in the Winter Revolution.
Description[]
The wand was long, straight and golden.[1] While its material was unknown, it was fragile enough to be broken by a sword.[2]
History[]
Jadis With Her Wand.
The origin of the wand is unknown (though it most likely was created during her exile in Wild Lands of the North). Jadis used it on her disobedient subjects throughout her reign (the number of statues in the courtyard and rooms of her castle testified to the frequency of its use). The wand itself was apparently infamous among the Narnians, as Mr. Tumnus was afraid the Witch would use it on him if she discovered that he had not handed Lucy Pevensie over to her as instructed.[3]
When Edmund Pevensie first encountered the Witch in her sledge, she was carrying the wand in her hand,[1] and had it on her person during nearly all of her later appearances. The major exception was when she walked into Aslan's Camp , as leaving it behind was a condition of the meeting.[4]
Edmund destroys the wand.
She is not recorded as having her wand at the sacrifice of Aslan at the Stone Table, probably because she didn't need it then, but she did carry it into the Battle of Beruna the following day. During the battle, she used it to great effect by picking off anyone within range, with no-one able to get close enough to her to land a blow without getting turned to stone. Edmund, realising that to even stand a chance against her they had to get rid of the wand, then bravely attacked her himself and managed to break the wand with his sword, while nearly getting killed in the process.
Uses/Powers[]
Fox being struck by the wand.
While the true extent of the wand's capabilities was unknown, its signature power was the ability to turn organic matter into stone: The spell caused its victims to turn into a statuesque still of themselves[5], and the only thing that could undo such a curse, apparently, was the breath of Aslan.[6]
When someone was turned into stone, it's possible they felt as though they were being put to sleep. This can be seen when the Giant Rumblebuffin was turned back to normal, as he claimed that he must have fallen asleep.[6]
Apparently the wand could also perform other types of transformations: Mr. Tumnus was afraid that if the Witch found out he did not hand over Lucy Pevensie, she would use her wand to turn his cloven hooves into solid hooves like a horse's.[3]
Jadis' wand may have also helped her perform other lesser acts of magic, such as tricking the minds of others into thinking she was a boulder and her dwarf was a tree stump.[4]
Known victims (turned to stone)[]
The effects of the Wand.
- Badger
- Bears
- A butterfly (film only)
- Centaurs
- Cheetahs
- Dogs
- Dryad
- Eagles
- Fauns
- Fox
- Giants
- Gryphon (film only)
- Horses
- Kangaroo (book only)
- Leopard
- A Lion
- A Lioness (film only)
- Minotaurs (Animated only)
- Moose (Animated only)
- Oreius (film only)
- Red Dwarves
- Rhinoceros (film only)
- Rumblebuffin the Giant
- Satyrs
- Squirrels
- Tumnus
- Wolf (ones that are not from the Secret Police)
Adaptations[]
The Wand as interpreted by Pauline Baynes, the animated feature, the BBC version and the Walden/Disney adaptations.
Each adaption of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe has portrayed the wand differently to how it was described in the book (sometimes subtly and sometimes dramatically):
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (animated)[]
In the animated feature; the wand appeared almost exactly as how it was described in the book (straight and golden), except that it was shorter than the one shown in Pauline Baynes' illustrations.
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (BBC serial)[]
In the BBC TV show; the wand had an ornate handle and was a simple dull silver. Aside from the powers described in the book, the wand was also used to conjure up a tented pavilion out of thin air, where Jadis and Edmund had their first talk. Afterwards, she used the wand to make the pavilion vanish as well.
The Chronicles of Narnia (film series)[]
In the Disney films, the wand was composed of five sections; a short crystal, followed by a silver bar, then a black handle, followed by another silver bar, and ending with a long crystal. There were also some engraved images on the wand, which looked like a vine of thorns. They started at the base of the short crystal (right where it connected to the silver handle), then curved around the wand up to the base of the long crystal. Unlike in the book, the wand only worked by touching the victim, turning them into stone by contact.
During the Battle of Beruna, Jadis cast an icy aura - presumably from her wand - that extinguished the wall of fire cast by the phoenix, allowing her forces to advance. When Edmund shatters it with his sword, it emits a great flash of blue light before Jadis stabs Edmund with the broken half, fatally wounding him, before tossing the remnants of the wand aside.
In Prince Caspian, the wand reappeared during Nikabrik's attempt to resurrect the White Witch. The Hag that Nikabrik had befriended had the repaired wand with her, although it still appears somewhat smashed from its destruction in the First Battle of Beruna. The wand was used to resurrect the spirit of the Witch, but the ritual was interrupted before she could become corporeal. The Hag was then slain, and the wand made no further appearances.