How old is Dumbledore?

[Boing]

This may seem like a basic question, but I am really having a hard time with this.

In PS/SS, we find out on his wizard card that he helped Flamel create the stone. We also find out that Flamel and his wife turned 665 the year the book was printed. I thought I had read somewhere that 150 or so years is pretty old for a wizard.

So, this brings me to a question - if Dumbledore was around to help discover the stone, when was he born? He must be super old. He would have had to work with Flamel when Flamel was at the most 140 or so, right? So that would mean it was about 525-515 years ago! If Dumbledore was around then, won't he die when the stone's elixir is used up?

There are a couple things that counter the idea that he could have been around - one is that the old witch that tests Harry in OotP said she tested Dumbledore as well, when he was at Hogwarts. As she can't be more than 150 or so years old, that would make us assume that Dumbledore is only 125 or so.

This may be completely off base, but I also just bought the PS/SS PC game and on Dumbledore's wizard card you can collect, it lists his date of birth as ?????.

I guess one of the things we could say is that Dumbledore traveled back in time to help Flamel. I don't know, though.

Does anybody else have insight into the age mystery?

[Kingsley]

i was under the impression Dumbledore was around 140---
his work with Flamel I thought was after Flamel found the uses and Dumbledore just researched it even more

[Alz]

An interesting observation there:)
How old is Dumbledore?
I was lead to belive he was mid 150's and I am taking this a good age for a Wizard ...
We have never really been introduced to the lifespan of a Witch or Wizard so we can only compare to a muggle, which I think is a wrong assumption ...
But interesting more than that is the Philosophers Stone and his work with Flamel ...
Are you absolutly sure of your facts there, I will go check myself but if indeed you have the sequance correct then Blaise is a happy man!

[Boing]

I don't have PS/SS with me as I lent it to a neighbor the other day. Argh. Well, let me say that I don't know for sure if he helped create the stone, but I think I can recall the card saying something like "blah blah blah, for his work on the PS/SS with Nicolas Flamel."

As we found on another thread, JKR has confirmed that Dumbledore is 150 years old on her website. This furthers my curiosity, though - how could he work on the PS/SS with Flamel unless wizards live to be 500 or he traveled back in time or JKR is lying to us!!

Blaise, what did you find?

[Alz]

OK, Here is what I can find ..


"Professor Dumbledore is particularly famous for his defeat of the dark wizard Grindelwald in 1945, for the discovery of the twelve uses of dragons blood and his work on alchemy with his partner, Nicolas Flamel"



'Nicolas Flamel,' She whispered dramatically, 'is the only known maker of the Philosophers stone!'



The ancient study of alchemy is concerned with making the Philosopher's Stone, a legendary substance with astonishing powers. The stone will transform any metal into pure gold. It also produces the Elixier of Life, which will make the drinker immortal.

There have been may reports of the Philosophers stone over the centuries, but the only stone in existance belongs to Mr Nicolas Flamel, the noted alchemist and opera-lover. Mr Flamel, who celebrated his six hundered and sixty-fifth birthday last year, enjoys a quiet life in Devon with his wife, Perenelle (six hundred and fifty-eight)


Later in the chapter "The man with two faces" Dumbledore then goes on to say that Flamel gave up the stone willingly and that now the stone is gone, they had stored enough Elixier to set their affairs in order ...

As far as working with Flamel, well tends to suggest that Dumbledore worked with him but didnt discover it, that was Flamel and further deduction would say that Flamel was already taking it by the time he worked with Dumbledore and as such could be any age ...
That is the way I read it - sorry Boing :(

[Boing]

Well, let's see - perhaps it can still be up for discussion. It says that Dumbledore worked on alchemy with his partner, Flamel. It then goes on to say that "the ancient study of alchemy is concerned with making the Philosopher's Stone, . . . "

So can we assume that alchemy is *only* associated (in this story, of course, as we know alchemy in our world consists of other things) with making the Stone? If that is true, then perhaps Dumbledore was actually working on it with him.

Although I have to say that it's pretty unlikely because then all the wizards would have to know that Dumbledore traveled back in time as it is on the cards - that would seem weird that no one has mentioned it at all.

[Tonks]

Alright, well JKR definitely said that Dumbledore is 150 in an interview (I think that may have been back in 2000 though so before OotP was published - so maybe he's 151 now ;) ).

I think that Flamel himself discovered how to make the Elixir of Life, and as Bla mentioned, would have been already taking it by the time he worked with Dumbledore at least 400 years later.

However, even if he had discovered the crucial part of the Elixir of Life, I think he was probably still working on the aspect of turning metal into gold, or maybe combining these two aspects into a stone-like substance, which Dumbledore definitely could've helped him with.

[Lily]

Yeah, that would make sense, Dumbledore being 150. The difference in ages between Flamel and Dumbledore is easily explained. Whilst Flamel was working on inventing the Stone, Dumbledore could've been a young, pimple-faced, teenager, assisting him...

:D lol, imagine, a young, pimple-faced Dumbledore.. maybe that's why he has such a long beard, to hide all his acne scars.. :D lol

(ah, I am easily amused... :))