A Summary of the Silmarillion in Pictures

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A Summary of the Silmarillion in Pictures

#1 Post by Karak Norn Clansman »

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Silmarillion is a great book, though quite biblically ponderous and sadly clinically free from humour. Skilled script writers could make several outstanding movies, or even a TV-series based on its many episodic stories. It's black and white (though the Fëanoreans are more greyscale characters) and all about big cosmic clashes. No funny little stories there, but epic battles and doomsday at the end of two ages, with vast swathes of lands drowned under the sea. Greed reigns supreme and trusts are broken.

The Silmarillion is dark, and basically everything goes to hell for the mortals. Anyone reading it will recognize many themes used in Lotr and Hobbit. In short, the Hobbit and the Lotr trilogy are the kinder child's version of Tolkien's fantasy, where good wins the day and saves the world. In Silmarillion, the world is flawed since creation, and though good may win the day, the world certainly isn't much saved...

The equivalent of Pelennor's Fields or Aragorn's march to the Black Gates end with a massive slaughter of Elves and their allies, with Orcs overrunning much of Beleriand (westernmost Middle Earth, sunk beneath the waves in 2nd-3rd ages) and several legendary story arcs kicking off amid this world falling apart into the abyss, with despair and darkness drowning out beacon after beacon of hope until only one light remains in the darkness.

Tip A: Fëanor (one of two characters who serves as the basis for WHFB's Aenarion) is the best character in the book. Well-developed, flawed in person though masterful in crafts, fiery in temper and the only one to slam his door in Morgoth's face. The one exception to the rule of no humour in the Silmarillion: "Get off my lawn, Dark Lord!"

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Tip B: The best Tolkien battle scenes are to be found in Fall of Gondolin. Written very early in the 1920s and showing signs of this several times, it is nevertheless splendid and not too surprisingly JRR never prioritized a rewrite update. It's worth reading, though it's not in the Silmarillion, but rather in the Unfinished Tales if one can dig it out among many of the other half-finished stories and early manuscripts found there. Seek it out.

The Silmarillion deserves to be filmed, and treated as well as possible (true to the spirit of the stories therein, but polished with some inserted humour where appropriate). Ultimately, the work is Tolkien's unfinished magnus opus, which he worked on from the late first world war (started writing when wounded at a war hospital) right up to the end of his life, polishing and adding to. His son Christopher (who worked together with an acclaimed fantasy author to compil and edited the Silmarillion together following his father's death) will not release the rights for filming. His father did for the Hobbit and Lotr trilogy in 1960s for tax inheritance reasons, which is why we had any Jackson movies at all, yet Christopher (for all his good work) is flawed in his outlook to deny the wider world access to his father's life work outside of the book itself.

We'll see what happens in the Tolkien estate upon Christopher Tolkien's passing away, but until then, we can only dream.

In the meanwhile, here are some images trawled from across the web compiled in an album, for a look at some fans' visions of the story and first age world (much remains to be added into the album).

Also, listen to Blind Guardian's Nightfall in Middle-Earth album for an audio take on the Silmarillion.


A few highlights. All the cosmic creator clash stuff is neat on its own and original in places, but the doings of mortals are what makes this the good story that it is:

The world is sung forth into existence by godly beings

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The mightiest of the gods to settle in the world, Melkor Morgoth Bauglir, rages as a chaotic force of nature for untold ages, acquiring followers and shaping the world in his violent struggle with the orderly gods. Morgoth causes untold damage and shatters all the works of his enemies.

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Morgoth starts out with an icy base up at the north pole, Utumno, where monsters are bred.

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As the coming of Elves first, then Humans, draw closer, the Valar (gods of order) decides to strike. They lay waste to Utumno and drag Morgoth chained  from its depths.

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A large part of the Elven tribes are led to Valinor (paradise home of the gods) to dwell among the gods.

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Morgoth broods chained and shackled for millenia, but seems to repent and work for good. He is granted some freedom, and teaches the Elves crafts. In  particular, he teaches the strongest Elven tribe, the Noldor to forge weapons. He also sows dissent and plants seeds of mistrust, rivalry, greed, hunger for power and destruction in the seemingly calm paradise.

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Fëanor, heir to the craftsfolk Noldor Elves, creates the Silmarils, gemstones of utter power and brilliance, envy of the very gods.

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Fëanor never trusts Morgoth, yet is ultimately more influenced by the Dark Lord than anyone else. For the first time in peaceful paradise, someone draw sword, and at his own brother (Fingolfin) at that.

"Look, half-brother, this blade is sharper than your tongue":


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As the Elven drama unfolds, Morgoth and Ungoliant (ancestor of Shelob) drains the twin Trees of Valinor, odd wooden predecessors of sun & moon

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Having killed the Noldor king Finwë, stolen precious magical gemstones and cast Valinor into chaos, Melkor Morgoth and Ungoliant escapes. In safety, Ungoliant demands her share, draining jewels in large numbers. She grows enormously powerful. She demands the last gems which Morgoth hides, the Silmarils, which he refuses her. Ungoliant turns on Morgoth, who gives up a giant roar of anguish and deepest terror (etches itself into the landscape where it took place), and is only saved by his host of Balrogs. He is now safely back in his new stronghold, Angband, marshalling new hosts and breeding monsters and Orcs.

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Meanwhile back in Valinor, all hell break loose as simmering conflicts unravel among the Noldor nobility. The gods sits in silent council while Fëanor, firstborn of the slain king Finwë, makes his seven sons swear a holy oath to retrieve the stolen Silmarils from the hands of whosoever holds it. Agitation among the Noldor results in an exodus back to Middle Earth.

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Another Elven tribe, the seafaring Teleri, refuses to lend the Noldor their ships. Bloodshed ensues in the first kinslaying, as the Noldor claim their ships by force. The Noldor gets cursed by the gods to die by the sword, to see all their efforts fail and to never return to Valinor, yet their only hope lies west across the sea.

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The Noldor split apart due to royal family conflict. Without enough ships to transport all the emigrees across the sea at once, the elder son Fëanor takes his followers across first. Rather than sending the ships back as promised, he burns the ships, forcing his half-brother Fingolfin to either walk back in shame to Valinor, or lead his people across the grinding ice to the north. These Elves press on, embittered.

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Fëanor leads his armed followers straight to Angband, intent on revenge and Silmarils. However, in his frenzy he charges ahead with only a few friends, leaving his vast army behind him. Seeing his chance, Morgoth sends out all his Balrogs in force to destroy this mighty mortal. It does not happen easily.

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The feuding Noldor factions barely manages to overcome their differences, settling in separate realms, encountering Wood Elves, Dwarves, Men and more, striking alliances where possible and building great kingdoms. Much happens. Morgoth's fortress of Beleriand is put under lengthy siege by the Noldor Elves for 400 years, who fights several large battles against Orcs. Eventually, however, the treachery of Men and the strength of Melkor results in the wholesale slaughter of the Elven hosts. Before this final damning defeat, however, the warlord Fingolfin challenges Morgoth to a duel in darkest despair, wounding the Dark Lord before dying. The Dwarves of Belegost play their part in the large final battle as well, falling upon the first revealed (wingless) dragon with their weapons and wounding it severely before marching off from the battlefield, singing dire dirges as they carry their slain king with no army present daring to stop their departure:

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The Dark Lord stands triumphant, erecting a huge hill of the slain and overrunning much of Middle-Earth.

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Most of the Silmarillion from now on deals with sagas of this slide into hell in a handbasket. Basically, it is a collection of legends on Morgoth's mopping-up of the defeated free peoples, and their last desperate grasping for hope and salvation. A few bits follow.


Húrin, a Human auxilliary in the service of king Turgon of Gondolin, sacrificed himself and his kinsfolk during the great defeat, acting as vanguard to allow the host of Gondolin to escape intact. Morgoth, however, has Húrin captured and chained to the rocky heights of his fortress. There, the Dark Lord use sorcery to make Húrin witness the unfolding of a curse laid upon the hero's children, Turin and Nienor.

Túrin grows up in the Wood Elf kingdom of Doriath, raised by the Elf Beleg Strongbow as a warrior in the wilderness. The nobleman Saeron, however, taunts Beleg for his uncouth manners and dirty dress at the king's table. For this affront, Túrin fights Saeron, defeats him, and runs him naked into a canyon where Saeron dies. Túrin is exiled, and joins a band of Human outlaws, pressuring the Petty-Dwarf Mîm to reveal his hidden home, which the bandits use as a base in their raids. Mîm eventually betrays Túrin, and Túrin is captured by Orcs. In the dark of the night, he is saved by his old mentor Beleg Strongbow, who cuts down the Orcs and release Túrin. Yet in the confusion amid darkness, Túrin mistakes Beleg for an Orc and cuts his friend down. Another captive, the Nargothrond prince Gwindor, picks up the black sword Gurthang and presents it to the Human slayer.

Túrin goes on to become a champion of the hidden Elf stronghold of Nargothrond, yet his rash tactics reveal its hidden location and allows Morgoth's troops to storm the city. Leading the assault is Glaurung, a mighty wingless dragon. During the sack of nargothrond, Glaurung transfix Túrin with his gaze alters Túrin's memory, ensorcelling him. Túrin drifts to the small Human forest realm of Brethil, where a naked woman named Nienor is one day found fleeing through the woods. Welcoming her, Túrin marries Nienor and makes her with child. Yet Brethil is discovered, and Glaurung singlehandedly approach the forest. Túrin hides in a canyon and stab the dragon through its weakly armoured gut, slaying the monster. The dying Glaurung lifts the spell from Túrin's mind, and the Human hero realize that he has married his own sister. In darkest despair,
he flings himself upon his black sword, whereupon Nienor flings herself from the rocks of the canyon.

Húrin has by now reached old age, and through Morgoth's sorcery seen everything that has befallen his children. The Dark Lord release Húrin, who encounters his old wife Morwen. The old couple can but look back on a life of misery, and Morwen dies in the arms of Húrin.


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The last Noldor stronghold remaining is the hidden city of Gondolin, who falls thanks to jealous treachery from within its own royal family. The fall of Gondolin is an epic battle, taking many Balrogs down with the doomed city.

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After much intrigue, the Wood Elf princess Luthien and her human lover Beren (Tolkien calls himself and his wife Beren & Luthien on his own tombstone) tricks Sauron and sneaks into the depths of Angband under a powerful spell. At the court of Morgoth, their cover is blown, but Luthien dances in enchanting sorcerous beauty, and the court falls asleep as Morgoth ponders vilating the fair maiden. They manage to free one Silmaril out of three from Morgoth's crown before Angband starts waking up, and flees in panic. Morgoth, however, bides his time and does not pursue the lost jewel, for he know it will doom the remaining free Elves.

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As the agreed (impossible) prize for his daughter Luthien's hand, the Wood Elf king Thingol receives the Silmaril, and contracts the most skilled Dwarf craftsmen to fashion a necklace for him. Quarrel ensues, however, and the Dwarves' greed for the invaluable Silmaril is awoken. They march with an army into the Wood Elf Kingdom Doriath, slaying many, killing Thingol and stealing the Silmaril. Beren and some Elven rangers ambushes the returning Dwarves, however, and captures the Silmaril.

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The release of one of the Silmarils back into the hands of mortals sets off a spiral of destruction. As word reaches the ears of the seven sons of Fëanor, they act upon their dark oath, and marches first into Doriath, sacking the capital and slaying many of the remaining populace, despite much diminished Fëanorean numbers. Following another lead, the Fëanoreans marches to the strong Dwarf city Nogrod, breaching its gates and sacking it as well, yet still no Silmaril has been found. Finally, the clues present themselves. The Fëanoreans descend upon the very last safe haven remaining in Beleriand, crushing the Elven refugees hiding there, yet failing to capture the Silmaril. Elf slays Elf. Dark deeds while Orcish hordes rampage across the fallen kingdoms.

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A half-Elf named Eärendil seizes the free Silmaril, embarking on a world-spanning odyssey, eventually landing in Valinor despite the cursed charms surrounding the realm of the gods. The Silmaril's powers makes him win through and lift the curse upon the doomed Noldor tribe. There, Eärendil rallies the Valar gods and their remaining Elves, who march to Middle-Earth and casts down Morgoth's titanic power and armies in the ruinous War of Wrath, which makes Beleriand shatter and eventually sink beneath the waves.

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Morgoth is defeated and cast out into outer space, though his creations and lieutnants remain, hiding and biding their time to rise again. The hunt for the Silmarils is not over, however. The last two surviving sons of Fëanor sneaks into the Valinor army's camp by night, killing guards to steal their Silmarils. However, they are caught.

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The Valinor generals, despite everything, gives them their precious jewels. The evil deeds committed in the hunt for the Silmarils have however darkened the Fëanoreans' souls completely, causing the pure Silmarils to scorch them. One son, Maglor, throws his gem into the sea to wander the earth singing sorrowful songs about the Elves of lost Beleriand forever. The other, Maedhros the oldest son, casts himself and his Silmaril into a yawning chasm, swallowed by fire.

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The Elves made a mess of the First Age. It is up to the Human Númenoreans to do likewise in the Second Age, and the cycle begins anew...

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Last edited by Karak Norn Clansman on Wed Aug 23, 2017 11:20 am, edited 3 times in total.
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Prince of Spires
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Re: A Summary of the Silmarillion in Pictures

#2 Post by Prince of Spires »

Some great images in there. I still hope that at some point the rights will be released for a series matching game of thrones. Too much material in there for a single movie (or set of movies). But enough to fill a whole bunch of seasons for a tv series. One thing I'm curious about is what will happen as the expiration of the copyright of JRR Tolkien approaches (in 2043). Christopher holds some rights on the Silmarillion, but it could very well be a legal nightmare as to what is and isn't allowed to be used. I and a lot of others at least would love to see something appear on screen. It's a great story of betrayal and demise. But also of heroics and fighting on despite all odds. Of coming through in the end. Everything must perish (which is also a theme in the LotR). But before it does you make the best of it. The duel between Fingolfin and Morgoth for instance is epic. A show of defiance and honour.

A small points, Earendil doesn't seize the silmaril. It comes to him through his wife Elwing, who inherited it from her father (Dior), who in turn inherited it from his parents Beren and Luthien. It's part of the reason he can keep it and use it to come to valinor. He didn't betray any other elves to get it but it was his by rights (more or less). Which means he didn't fall under the curse of Manwe.

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Re: A Summary of the Silmarillion in Pictures

#3 Post by SpellArcher »

Superb thread, thank you KNC. Many of us love High Elves because of The Silmarillion.
Prince of Spires wrote:The duel between Fingolfin and Morgoth for instance is epic. A show of defiance and honour.
Spot on Rod. Ringil leaves it's mark!
Karak Norn Clansman wrote:quite biblically ponderous
To anyone struggling to get past the first part I say, keep going, it's worth it. Only after the fourth or fifth reading did things begin to stick for me.
Karak Norn Clansman wrote:sadly clinically free from humour.
I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not. I believe there wasn't a great deal of humour in Beowulf for example.
Karak Norn Clansman wrote:It's black and white (though the Fëanoreans are more greyscale characters)
I'm not so sure. Túrin, the Dwarves, Thingol, Galadriel (just one example of this branch of the Noldor) and others are compromised in one way or another.
Karak Norn Clansman wrote:In short, the Hobbit and the Lotr trilogy are the kinder child's version of Tolkien's fantasy, where good wins the day and saves the world.
I get the reasoning but these days I really dig the LOTR because it has the epic backstory.
Karak Norn Clansman wrote: Tip A: Fëanor (one of two characters who serves as the basis for WHFB's Aenarion) is the best character in the book.
Controversy here! Finrod Felagund, Maedhros, Aulë, Húrin, Beren, Sauron for example are all great characters.
Karak Norn Clansman wrote:Tip B: The best Tolkien battle scenes are to be found in Fall of Gondolin.
Unnumbered Tears for me. Glaurung v The Dwarves (as you mention) is fabulous!
Karak Norn Clansman wrote:We'll see what happens in the Tolkien estate upon Christopher Tolkien's passing away
Christopher's done us all a huge service with his work and obviously we all hope he lives as long as possible. He must be getting on though.
Karak Norn Clansman wrote: Fingolfin to either walk back in shame to Valinor, or lead his people across the grinding ice to the north. These Elves press on, embittered.
This is a huge moment and when we first start to see the heroism, as well as the selfishness of the Noldor shine through. Turgon's wife and many others die in this crossing.
Karak Norn Clansman wrote:this mighty mortal
In Arda, elves are immortal, unless slain or some other such, they live forever. Galadriel for example was born long before the Rebellion, in Aman and survived to return, near the end of the Third Age.
Karak Norn Clansman wrote:the hidden city of Gondolin
This is such a mythic element. The Unconquered Fortress, the Magic Mountain, the City of Lights. Of course it's an echo of Tirion and Minas Tirith for example is kind of an echo of it.

Many great images, thanks again.

"Beleriand was ablaze with the glory of their arms, for the host of the Valar were arrayed in forms young and fair and terrible, and the mountains rang beneath their feet."

From 'Of the Voyage of Eärendil and the War of Wrath'.
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Re: A Summary of the Silmarillion in Pictures

#4 Post by Karak Norn Clansman »

Correct on Eärendil and Elven immortality (the latter being bread and butter of Tolkien's whole fiction). This was all scraped together as rapidly as possible yesternight before going to sleep, so mistakes might have to be cleaned out.

On Elven immortality, however, I wanted to stay simple and not rely on Tolkien's own terminology to keep it as accessible as possible. The reason being that gods (Ainu i all their forms, great or small) probably will live on after the end of the world in one form or other, while Elves are bound up with the world and face an uncertain final doomsday unlike the souls of men. For the purposes here, the use of "mortal" is simply to imply something roughly on the level of humans that can be slain.

As for humour, Beowulf and such are not full of humour. But other ancient myths such as those involving Thor in Norse mythology have quite some fun, and Tolkien had a good sense of humour. I think a little laugh in places would benefit the whole work. It cannot be done to the book, obviously, but done without wrecking the overall impression of the Silmarillion it could be healthy for it on screen. Also Ents need to get some appearance, since they were a thing of the ancient past, yet are never explicitly stated outside of Yavanna getting to create her own people (they don't show up in the 1st Age, for instance).

Yeah, Silmarillion sports a host of great characters. I always fell for Fëanor, but there are lots of other ones that were obviously well-developed and inspired. The whole work is so good it deserves to be made accessible to a wider public, without dumbing it down (at least not much).

No smudge on Lotr and the Hobbit! But the Sil still looks like the darker bloodier version in comparison. ;)

Christopher Tolkien has done a great work and I wish him all health and happiness in life. However, his views on filming do not further the legacy of his father and indeed his own legacy, seeing as how bound up in his father's work he's been since early childhood years and how critical his role was in publishing Tolkien's unfinished works. Also, I hope his rift with his own son over their opposite stances on the Lotr trilogy movies heal.

The Silmarillion could always be filmed in Russia away from Tolkien estate lawyers... :twisted:

Cheers!


Some more images, credit where credit is due, yet none mentioned and none forgotten among the talented artists who brought us these pictures:

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Himring, fortress of Maedhros. Still Remains as an isle off to the west of Lindon in the 3rd Age:

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Wood Elves hunting Petty-Dwarves:

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Mîm the Petty-Dwarf:

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Re: A Summary of the Silmarillion in Pictures

#5 Post by SpellArcher »

Karak Norn Clansman wrote:On Elven immortality, however, I wanted to stay simple and not rely on Tolkien's own terminology to keep it as accessible as possible. The reason being that gods (Ainu i all their forms, great or small) probably will live on after the end of the world in one form or other, while Elves are bound up with the world and face an uncertain final doomsday unlike the souls of men. For the purposes here, the use of "mortal" is simply to imply something roughly on the level of humans that can be slain.
Elves are a kind of half-way house in my view. They definitely see themselves as separate from Mortals (see LOTR scene from Rivendell with Aragorn and Bilbo). Less eternal than the great spirits though I guess.
Karak Norn Clansman wrote:it could be healthy for it on screen.
Agreed.
Karak Norn Clansman wrote:Also Ents need to get some appearance, since they were a thing of the ancient past, yet are never explicitly stated outside of Yavanna getting to create her own people (they don't show up in the 1st Age, for instance).
Ambush of the Dwarves of Nogrod on their way back from Menegroth, pg 284.
Karak Norn Clansman wrote:I always fell for Fëanor,
Epic dude, it has to be said!
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Re: A Summary of the Silmarillion in Pictures

#6 Post by Karak Norn Clansman »

SpellArcher wrote:Ambush of the Dwarves of Nogrod on their way back from Menegroth, pg 284.
Good catch! True.
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Re: A Summary of the Silmarillion in Pictures

#7 Post by Prince of Spires »

The thing with the Silmarillion is that there are no characters in there that make a direct connection to the reader, which is the purpose of the hobbits in LotR. The elves are far grander and a lot more bad-ass then in the LotR and are as such much farther removed from the reader, which makes it harder to relate to them. Which I think is one of the main problems with the Silmarillion that Tolkien struggled with.

On the other hand, that also gave it the epic feel that it has. And makes it so that it's unlike any other fantasy piece (at least ones I've encountered). In the Silmarillion, elves really are very different from humans, unlike most fantasy, where they are simply fast, tall and lean humans with pointy ears...

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Re: A Summary of the Silmarillion in Pictures

#8 Post by SpellArcher »

Prince of Spires wrote:
On the other hand, that also gave it the epic feel that it has.
Just so. These are the High Elves of the West we're talking about. When Elrond speaks of them in The Hobbit, there really is a sense of mythology and magic.
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Re: A Summary of the Silmarillion in Pictures

#9 Post by Karak Norn Clansman »

People have cursed Photobucket vehemently during this summer. Because of this crisis, a salvage operation had to be undertaken. The above summary is now restored, with Húrin's children included because someone asked for it elsewhere.
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Re: A Summary of the Silmarillion in Pictures

#10 Post by SpellArcher »

Good job KNC.

=D>
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