Professor McGonagall

Professor Minerva McGonagall is Deputy Headmistress, Head of Gryffindor House and Transfiguration teacher at Hogwarts. Dressed in dark green with her hair drawn back in a severe bun, this portrait captures her intelligence and no-nonsense attitude. Her glasses sit low on her nose, ideal for peering piercingly at students. As a registered Animagus, she can transform into a cat. Becoming an Animagus is a complex process that involves holding a mandrake leaf in your mouth for a month. She is named ‘Minerva’ after the Roman goddess of wisdom – her surname echoes the notoriously bad Scottish poet, William McGonagall. The juxtaposition of giving such a highly capable and intelligent character the surname of a hopelessly awful poet is an example of the humour and wit employed throughout the world of Harry Potter.

A tall, black-haired witch in emerald-green robes stood there. She had a very stern face and Harry's first thought was that this was not someone to cross.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone