GALADHRIM
ELVEN ARCHERS

 

 

THE ARMOR

"......The most significant factor behind the changes made in Elven armor between the Second and the Third Ages was that the armor worn at the Last Alliance was of Noldorin design, whereas that worn at Helm's Deep was fashioned by the Sindarin Elves of Lothlórien. As has already been said, Third Age Elven Armor reflected the autumnal themes and hues seen in nature- the coppers and browns and rich golds- as oppose to the greens and yellow-golds of spring, or rebirth, found in earlier pieces.

Before marching to Helm's Deep the Elves put on their steel battle armor, for they knew there would likely be hand-to-hand fighting and, since they did not carry shields, their bodies would be exposed to attack.

 Over their normal traveling clothes they wore a hauberk of very fine gold, leaf-shaped mail with long sleeves, which went into a knee-length skirt of metallic silk that had been painstakingly embroidered to give it a pattern of row upon row of tiny leaf-shapes. Both hauberk and skirt gave the appearance of a carpet of leaves fallen from the tree, nearing the end of their natural cycle......"

From Page 120-121, LORD OF THE RINGS: WEAPONS AND WARFARE

 

 

"......Unlike the Noldorin armor, the gold-plated steel cuirass and fauld were separate. The cuirass represented the very pinnacle of armor design; it was like a fan in that it featured a hinge point at the breastbone that allowed the lames on each side to move over one another as the soldier drew his arrows and sword, and as he spun and twisted in combat. This hinge point was decorated with a badge that had the Elf's house enameled on it. Each lame was slightly curved to represent a fallen leaf, with the veins on the underside of the leaf now exposed; trailing across all the metal armor was a fine gold filigree representing both delicate vines and the tengwar of the written language Quenya. In the mind of the Elf this would spiritually strengthen the armor, giving him even more confidence in battle.

The fauld consisted of eight lames, and like the cuirass these were linked with leather points to move with the soldier as he did; the design again reflected a fallen leaf. The fauld was attached to the body by a leather belt.

To further protect the stomach, the Elves wore a leather tunic between the hauberk and the cuirass. Leather was also used for the gloves and the bracers, which extended over the hands to protect them from the snap of the bowstring. To protect the outside of the arm a steel vambrace was tied over the bracer, and a steel pauldron was strapped to the cuirass and arm......"

From Page 120-121, LORD OF THE RINGS: WEAPONS AND WARFARE

 

 

"......The autumnal theme extended to the helmet, in that its latticed steel gave the appearance of a torn leaf. It flexed when it was put on, fitting snugly around the head to ensure that it stayed in place during battle; the small curved crest was more decorative than defensive......"

From Page 118, LORD OF THE RINGS: WEAPONS AND WARFARE

 

 

"......The last item of protection was a cloak of deep green silk, its long ties passing over the shoulders and back, then tied around the waist; although the cloak was of little use against direct attack, its movement could distract the eye of an attacker, causing him to miss his aim. The Sindarin refinement of the Noldorin design resulted in armor that was the most sophisticated ever to be seen in Middle-Earth."

From Page 118, LORD OF THE RINGS: WEAPONS AND WARFARE

 

THE BOW & QUIVER

"......The seven-foot stave was sealed with mallorn resin and gilded in an elegant embossed pattern of twining golden leaves on either side of the leather handgrip; the curved ends of the stave were gilded and bore a spur, but the nock was located a few inches farther in. The length of the bow meant that it could never be fully drawn, but the Elves would still pull the string back beyond the eye rather than up to it. This required a huge amount of individual strength and years of training as the bows would have had a draw of more than two hundred pounds. It is said that the strings of the bows carried within them a single strand of Elven hair, to give greater strength and power to the arrow's flight. The combination of the inherent power of the mallorn wood and the energy generated from the curves in each arm of the bow meant that the Galadhrim could send an arrow with pinpoint accuracy across enormous distances, perhaps a quarter of a mile or more......"

From Page 118, LORD OF THE RINGS: WEAPONS AND WARFARE

 

 
       
   
       

 

"......The pale arrows were almost four feet long, made from unstained ash or occasionally mallorn shoots, with long broad-headed tips made of gold, which extended into a long sleeve that gave greater stability. The barbs gave the tips the subtle appearance of a mallorn leaf and were used as cutting edges to tear into the enemy; they were lethal against all targets, whether armored or not. The flights were long white goose or swam feathers, and these were skillfully tied to the shaft in a spiral pattern with a single cock-screwing loop of gold wire. Lórien arrows were the only ones at that time to employ a spiral fletching, so it can be assumed that the Elves were unique in discovering that an arrow fired with a spiraling flight is much more accurate than a normal one.

To withstand the force generated by these powerful bows, the nocks were reinforced with a transverse piece of deer antler so that the wood did not shatter when the string was released.

From Page 118, LORD OF THE RINGS: WEAPONS AND WARFARE

 

 

".......The design of the quiver, like that of the sword, differed little from that used almost three thousand years before; it was leather, stood roughly half the length if the arrows, and its mouth resembled two overlapping leaves. However, the Elves of Lórien did embellish them with the same embossed gold vine pattern found on all their armor."

From Page 118, LORD OF THE RINGS: WEAPONS AND WARFARE

 

 
     
     

 

THE SWORD

"The sword carried by the Elves of Lórien differed little from that carried by their Noldorin kin during the Last Alliance. It can therefore be assumed that the design had already reached its pinnacle in the Second Age, and was merely faithfully reproduced whenever a new sword was required. Of course, some of the Elves that marched to Helm's Deep may have had kin that fought against Sauron's army, and so might have inherited the weapon when that family member took ship to the Undying Lands.

As has been said before, the five-foot sword was half blade and half handgrip; the blade was relatively wide given its length, sharp only along the lower edge and with more weight in the top of the blade than near the cutting edge- its was fullered along the entire length of the top part of the blade. The cutting edge curved up to meet the tip, rather than tapering like a normal sword, partly to keep the blade strong along its entire length and partly to extend the cutting edge.

The Elves kept both hands on the handgrip, one at each end, and swung the sword in a whirling motion: this motion meant that the tip, which was the fastest-moving part of the blade, would have been scything into the Elves' enemy, so it had to be able to withstand the impact of hitting armor at high speed...."

From Page 119, LORD OF THE RINGS: WEAPONS AND WARFARE

 

"......The scabbard of the Elven swords was the twin of them in terms of beauty; made from the trees of the Golden Wood, it was deep burnished honey color, with gold tengwar patterns etched along its length.

It seems to have been attached to the rig that held the quiver as well as to the belt that were around the warrior's waist; like the arrows, it was long and so was worn on the back, being drawn over the shoulder rather than across the body. The usual configuration meant that an Elf would reach over his right shoulder for an arrow and over his left for his sword."

From Page 120, LORD OF THE RINGS: WEAPONS AND WARFARE

 

MORE REFERENCES

Alleycatscratch


 

If interested, please purchase the LORD OF THE RINGS: WEAPONS AND WARFARE Book here
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0618391002/ref=ed_oe_p/002-7619922-3178401?v=glance&s=books&st=*

Last updated on 30th Oct 2007.
Website had been created for Non-Commercial, Non-Business, Non-Profit and Non-Money Making Purposes and not affiliated with Tolkien Enterprises, Tolkien Estate or New Line Cinema. All LOTR Fan Photos are the property of their respective owners.
All pictures, themes, and characters are copyright © Tolkien Enterprises, Tolkien Estate or New Line Cinema. or their creators. All original work is protected by intellectual property laws. No copyright infringement is intended - copyrighted images are being used for costume study.
All rights reserved wherever applicable.