harry potter - What was guarding the Sorcerer's (Philosopher's) Stone before the mirror of Erised?

So, we know that the Mirror of Erised was the ultimate guardian to the Stone in the first Harry Potter book, but we also know that it wasn't there until about the New Year. The Stone was there for perhaps 4 months before that. Was it just as protected as it could be during those months, or perhaps the mirror was moved back briefly so Harry could look into it? Just curious if there's ever been anything official on this matter.

Answer

As far as I very vaguely recall, it was only explicitly stated that it was Fluffy (Hagrid confirmed to them it was guarding something when they discussed Snape after the Quidditch match).

However, the rest of the magical defenses in the 7 chambers - aside from the mirror - were probably also in place at that time as well, although there is no information about it in any sources. The most comprehensive reference seems to be http://harrypotter.wikia.com/wiki/Philosopher%27s_Stone_Chambers and it's silent on when each post-fluffy defense is added. However, it may be guessed that they were all added at the same time as Fluffy.

As far as the mirror, there's no evidence, but Harry himself says he suspects that it was placed in room for him to find (and therefore was employed as a defense prior to that) in the end of HPSS:

I don't think it was an accident he [Dumbledore] let me find out how the mirror worked. It's almost like he had thought I had the right to face Voldemort if I could...

Comments

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