Literary Lineage

The lineage of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

33 works across 28 centuries, back to Iliad and Odyssey.

  1. c. 1190

    Perceval, the Story of the Grail

    Chrétien de Troyes

    High Middle Ages. France. written in Old French.

    Unfinished verse romance about a naive young knight who visits the Fisher King's castle and fails to ask about the Grail.

    What it handed down

    To The Vulgate Cycle (Lancelot-Grail) (c. 1215-1235)

    Direct source, well documented.

    The Vulgate's Grail quest grows out of the story Chrétien left unfinished in Perceval, recast in prose and given a Christian meaning with Galahad as the Grail knight.

    Where it came from

    Find “Perceval, the Story of the Grail” on Amazon

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Preview card: the tree of influence behind Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone