>> If this Stone is so valuable, shouldn’t it have a bit more security? <<
Since Dumbledore intended for Harry to fight Voldemort, perhaps he truly didn't understand that Voldemort was being kept alive by Horcruxes and hoped that Lily's protection would kill Voldemort if he fought Harry.
The one and only Voldemort proof barrier to the Philosopher's Stone, the Mirror of Erised, would have been sufficient by itself to ensure the Stone's safety. There was no reason for Dumbledore to suppose that Harry could have got the Stone out of it any more than Voldemort or Quirrell could have done. So maybe he intended Voldemort and Harry to get as far as the Mirror and be unable to obtain the stone - with the result that they would fight and Voldemort would be killed or permanently weakened (no matter what happened to Harry in the process).
The other safeguards in the dungeons are obviously designed specifically for the trio to break through. The Devil's Snare is something they teach first years about. Dumbledore knew Harry was a good enough Seeker to catch the winged key. And the chess set and junior brain teaser are clearly geared to Ron and Hermione. However, they are arranged in such an order that only Harry would eventually be able to go through the Spinal Tap flames. Logically Dumbledore must have supposed that the Stone was safe in the mirror, and that Harry and Voldemort would be frustrated in their efforts to obtain it and that Voldemort would attack Harry and bear the brunt of Lily's protection.
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timeasmymeasure
Idiot picture
Date: 2010-05-23 07:20 pm (UTC)Since Dumbledore intended for Harry to fight Voldemort, perhaps he truly didn't understand that Voldemort was being kept alive by Horcruxes and hoped that Lily's protection would kill Voldemort if he fought Harry.
The one and only Voldemort proof barrier to the Philosopher's Stone, the Mirror of Erised, would have been sufficient by itself to ensure the Stone's safety. There was no reason for Dumbledore to suppose that Harry could have got the Stone out of it any more than Voldemort or Quirrell could have done. So maybe he intended Voldemort and Harry to get as far as the Mirror and be unable to obtain the stone - with the result that they would fight and Voldemort would be killed or permanently weakened (no matter what happened to Harry in the process).
The other safeguards in the dungeons are obviously designed specifically for the trio to break through. The Devil's Snare is something they teach first years about. Dumbledore knew Harry was a good enough Seeker to catch the winged key. And the chess set and junior brain teaser are clearly geared to Ron and Hermione. However, they are arranged in such an order that only Harry would eventually be able to go through the Spinal Tap flames. Logically Dumbledore must have supposed that the Stone was safe in the mirror, and that Harry and Voldemort would be frustrated in their efforts to obtain it and that Voldemort would attack Harry and bear the brunt of Lily's protection.