Tolkien - Items, Swords, & Rings

Disclaimer: All of the following are either direct quotes or paraphrasing of excerpts
from A Guide to Middle Earth by Robert Foster.

Hash-marked^# names are characters present/mentioned in the Hobbit movies.
*Asterisked names are characters present/mentioned in the LotR movies.

Items, Swords, Rings

ITEMS

Arkenstone^#:

A great white jewel, also called the Heart of the Mountain, found deep beneath Erebor by Thráin I. It was the greatest treasure of the Kings of Erebor, but was left in Erebor when Smaug drove the Dwarves out in Third Age 2770. In 2941, while a member of Thorin and Company, Bilbo found it when he explored Smaug's hoard and used it to attempt a reconciliation between Thorin and the Elves and Men besieging him. It was later buried with Thorin.

*Athelas^#:

Called kingsfoil in Westron and considered by the unknowledgeable to be a weed, ATHELAS was actually a healing plant brought to Middle-earth by the Númenoreans. It had a pleasing fragrance and, used by the heirs of Elendil, was helpful in curing wounds, counteracting poisons, and banishing evil influences.

*Lembas:

Waybread of the Galadrim of Lórien. Thin cakes, each of which was enough for a day's journey. Lembas remains fresh for many days if kept unbroken in its leaf wrappings. Unlike cram (biscuits eaten by the Men of Esgaroth while traveling), lembas was tasty.

*Mithril^#:

A silver metal found only in the mines of Khazad-dûm, greatly treasured by the Dwarves, the Elves, the Dúnedain, and by Sauron. Mithril could be beaten and polished without weakening, and it was light and hard and did not tarnish. Bilbo received a coat of mail from Thorin that was made of mithril. Nenya, one of the Three Rings, and the helms of the Guards of the Citadel of Minas Tirith were also made of mithril. The dwarves of Khazad-dûm mined deeply after the mithril veins and accidentally released the Balrog from its prison deep beneath the mountain roots. The Balrog drove the Dwarves from Khazad-dûm and no more mithril was produced from then on. Therefore, by the end of the Third Age, mithril had become priceless.

*Palantír (pl. palantíri):

Seven crystal globes that would show scenes far away in space and time. The views could be controlled by a person of strong will and two palantíri could be used to communicate. The palantíri were brought to Middle-earth after the fall of Númenor. The chief palantír was placed in Osgiliath; the others were placed at Minas Ithil, Minas Anor, Orthanc, Annúminas, the Tower Hills, and the Tower of Amon Sûl. The palantír from the Tower Hills was put aboard the white ship of the Last Riding of the Keepers of the Rings, which bore Bilbo, Frodo, Gandalf, Galadriel, Elrond, and others across the Sea. The palantíri of Amon Sûl and Annúminas were lost in a shipwreck, and the palantír of Osgiliath was lost when that city was burned during a civil war in Gondor. The palantír of Minas Ithil was captured by the Nazgûl in the Third Age, and was probably destroyed with the defeat of Sauron in the War of the Ring. The Kings and Stewards of Gondor did not use the palantír of Minas Anor after the fall of Minas Ithil, until Denethor II decided that he needed the knowledge the palantír could give him in order to defeat Sauron. However, using the Ithil-stone, Sauron manipulated Denethor's visions and caused him to go mad during the Battle of the Pelennor Fields. Saruman took up residence in Orthanc with the intent of finding the stone that resided there, but using it, he became ensnared by Sauron. During the War of the Ring, Saruman's henchman Gríma threw the stone out of the tower, where it was recovered by Aragorn, who used it to help plan the course of action that resulted in victory for the West in the Battle of the Pelennor Fields. After the War of the Ring, Aragorn used this palantír to show him the state of his kingdom.

Silmaril (pl. silmarilli):

Three great jewels filled with light that were one of the treasures of the Eldamar. Morgoth stole the stones, and BEREN AND LÚTHIEN recovered one of them and gave it to EÄRENDIL. He and the Silmaril were placed in the heavens as the star Eärendil. This story is told in The Silmarillion, which was probably part of Bilbo's Translations from the Elvish.

*GALADRIEL'S GIFTS

To all members of the Fellowship, Galadriel gave the following:

Cakes of lembas in leaf wrappings
3 small grey boats
short-handled paddles with broad, leaf-shaped blades
9 coils of rope made of hithlain (3 to each boat)
a hood and cloak for each member, light-weight, but warm and of a shade that varied from grey to green to brown to silver
A brooch for fastening each cloak at the neck, shaped like a green leaf veined with silver

To Aragorn, Galadriel gave the following:

A sheath for Andúril, overlaid with a tracing of flowers and leaves wrought in silver and gold, and containing in elf-runes the name 'Andúril' and the lineage of the sword.
A silver brooch wrought in the likeness of an eagle with outspread wings and containing a great stone of clear green which had been passed down from Galadriel, to her daughter, to Arwen, and now to Aragorn as a token of hope.

To Boromir, Galadriel gave the following:

To Merry & Pippin, Galadriel gave the following:

Small silver belts, each with a clasp wrought like a golden flower.

To Legolas, Galadriel gave the following:

A bow of the Galadrim, longer and stouter then the bows of Mirkwood, and strung with elf-hair.
A quiver of arrows to go with the bow.

To Sam, Galadriel gave the following:

A small box of plain grey wood, with a single silver 'G' rune upon the lid. The box contained earth from Galadriel's orchard, as well as a seed from the mallorn trees of Lórien. Sam used this gift after the scouring of the Shire, to help restore the gardens and fields destroyed by Saruman's people. The mallorn tree he planted where the party tree had stood near Bag End.

To Gimli, Galadriel gave the following:

3 golden hairs from her head, although he asked only for one. When she asked him what he would do with the gift, he replied that he would treasure it in memory of their first meeting, and that he hoped to eventually set it in crystal as an heirloom and pledge of goodwill between the Mountain and the Wood until the end of days.

To Frodo, Galadriel gave the following:

A small crystal phial. Within the phial was caught the light of Eärendil's star, set amid the water of Galadriel's fountain; a light to Frodo in dark places, when all other lights go out.

SWORDS

*Glamdring^#:

Gandalf's sword, originally made by the Elves of Gondolin for the wars against Morgoth. Gandalf found the sword in a troll-hoard while accompanying Thorin and Company on their quest to Erebor. Called Beater by the Orcs, Glamdring glowed with a blue light in the presence of those creatures.

*Narsil (Andúril):

Sword of Elendil, broken when Elendil was killed fighting Sauron during the Battle of Dagorlad in the Second Age. The shards were an heirloom of the line of Isildur and were presented to Aragorn by Elrond when he came of age. Narsil was reforged in preparation for the War of the Ring and re-named Andúril, the Flame of the West.

Orcrist^#:

Thorin Oakenshield's sword, and the mate of Glamdring. After his death in the Battle of the Five Armies, Orcrist was placed on Thorin's tomb in Erebor and thereafter warned the Dwarves of the approach of enemies.

*Sting^#:

Long knife forged by Elves in the First Age, found by Bilbo in the same troll-hoard as Glamdring and Orcrist, and named by him on the journey to Erebor. Like the two swords, Sting glowed with a blue light near Orcs. Bilbo eventually gave the knife to Frodo, and Frodo gave Sting to Sam after Sam used it to wound Shelob.

*RINGS OF POWER^#

The greatest rings of Middle-earth, forged by the Elves and Sauron during the Second Age. There were Nine rings for Men, Seven for Dwarves, and Three for Elves. Ten years after these rings were forged, Sauron treacherously forged the One Ring to rule the others. The Elves escaped his trap, and the Dwarves were not controllable through the rings, but the Nine Rings ensnared their wearers, creating the Nazgûl. When the One Ring was destroyed in the War of the Ring, the other Rings lost their power. Dwarves were unaffected by the Rings, but any other mortal who wore them would live indefinitely and not die. All of the Rings, except for the One, consisted of a metal band set with a single gem.

*Three Rings (Elven-rings)^#:

Forged without Sauron's assistance, but controllable by him through the One Ring. Held the power to build, understand, and heal, rather than to control or conquer.

Vilya - Mightiest of the Three, originally worn by Gil-galad and later, by Elrond. A gold band set with a blue stone.

*Nenya - Ring of Adamant, worn by Galadriel. A band of mithril set with a white stone.

Narya - Ring of Fire, originally worn by Cirdan and later, by Gandalf. Had the power to strengthen hearts and was set with a red stone.

*Seven Rings (Dwarf-rings)^#:

Probably given to the Kings of each of the seven houses of Dwarves. Sauron failed to control the Dwarves through their Rings when he forged the One Ring, because the Dwarves were unaffected by their powers. He managed to recover three of the Rings, including that of Thráin II, and dragons consumed the other four.

*Nine Rings (Wraith-rings)^#:

The nine Men who wore these Rings were easily corrupted by Sauron and became the Nazgûl. The Rings preserved them, but they became invisible and totally dependent upon Sauron and the One Ring. The Nine rings were destroyed when the One was destroyed in Orodruin during the War of the Ring.

*One Ring / The Ring^#:

The greatest of the Rings of Power, secretly forged by Sauron after the forging of the other Rings. Sauron intended to control the bearers of the other Rings with it, but instead was only able to control the Nine Rings through it. The One Ring was completely evil and contained much of Sauron's own power. In Sauron's first downfall in the Second Age, the Ring was lost in the Anduin where it was found many years later by Gollum, who called it his 'Preciouss'. Gollum took the Ring with him into the Misty Mountains, where he lived for hundreds of years due to the longevity provided him by the Ring. Bilbo found the Ring while traveling with Thorin and Company through the mountains, and he passed it on to Frodo, who carried it into Mordor and destroyed it in the fires of Orodruin.

The Ring was a solid gold band in appearance, with a finely engraved inscription that could only be read when the Ring was heated. It was forged in the Fire of Doom and that was the only place in which it could be melted.

The Ring had some measure of self-determination. Gandalf claimed that the Ring set itself to be found by Bilbo in the mountains because it was trying to get back to Sauron. The Ring used and abused its wearers, extending their lives while enslaving them and even physically changing them as their bodies and souls were consumed by the Ring's hunger. Those of little power who wore the Ring became invisible, with their sight and hearing increased.

Items, Swords, Rings

ITEMS

Arkenstone#:

*Athelas#: