Amortentia

"Powerful infatuations can be induced by the skillful potioneer, but never yet has anyone managed to create the truly unbreakable, eternal, unconditional attachment that alone can be called Love."

- Hector Dagworth-Granger on love potions.

Amortentia is the most powerful Love Potion in the entire world. It causes a powerful infatuation or obsession in the drinker. It has a distinctive mother-of-pearl sheen, and steam rises from it in characteristic spirals.

It has a different aroma for everyone who smells it, reminding each person of the things that they find most attractive, even if the person themselves doesn't acknowledge or is unaware of their fondness for the object of their affection e.g. Hermione Granger smells fresh cut grass, new parchment, spearmint toothpaste, and Ron Weasley. Harry Potter smelled treacle tart, the woody scent of broomstick handle, and "something flowery that he thought he might have smelled at the Burrow" (which he later realised was the smell of Ginny Weasley's perfume). Ron Weasley smelled his mother's cooking, bacon, and the perfume he gave Hermione in their fifth year at Hogwarts for Christmas.

"Amortentia doesn't create actual love, of course. That's impossible. But it does cause a powerful infatuation or obsession. For that reason, it is probably the most dangerous potion in this room."

- Horace Slughorn while in Potion class in 1996.

The effects of the potion on a person are described to be near instantaneous; with the person who drank the potion appearing "pale and sickly" and becoming obsessed with the object of their affections, speaking of them as though "hit by a ray of purest sunlight" and becoming excited or dangerously unstable towards others.

The potion must be administrated continuously in order to maintain the false love in the drinker. Otherwise, as with Merope Gaunt and Tom Riddle Sr., the effects will wear off and the victim would regain their own free will.

Etymology
Amor is a Roman god of love, and the word "Amor" in Latin means "Love."

"Tentia" is also Latin for "held."

Behind the scenes

 * It was stated by J.K. Rowling that a large fountain filled with Amortentia could be found in the Love Room in the Department of Mysteries.
 * In Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Hermione does not say what the third thing she smells is, although Rowling revealed in an interview that the third smell was Ron's hair. However, in the film version, Hermione states that the third thing she smells is spearmint toothpaste, due to the fact that in an earlier scene at The Burrow where Ron points out to Hermione there is toothpaste on her face and her parents being dentists.
 * On Scholastic's official website, the spell name is given incorrectly as "Amortenti."

Appearances

 * Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
 * Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film)
 * LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7