Eagles
[For…]some two thousand years, there was an eyrie of golden eagles in the summit of the tower of the king’s palace in Armenelos. There one pair ever dwelt and lived on the bounty of the king.
Tolkien, J. R. R.. The Fall of Númenor: And Other Tales from the Second Age of Middle-earth (p. 22).
Of all predatory birds, eagles had a rich and long history in Middle-earth – and it was the same in Númenor. We can mention a select few tidbits here, and invite you to find the rest!
The eagles on the island mostly dwelt in the North, amongst the cliffs of Forostar. We learn that there were several kinds dwelling on the island, and that the Númenóreans never molested or hunted them. That was until the very end, when the hatred of the Valar replaced reverence for them-- as eagles were held sacred to Manwë. No doubt this tradition went back to the First Age, when there were many tales of the Great Eagles: the most renowned amongst the Edain was the one, no doubt, recounting how eagles brought Huor and Húrin to Gondolin.
The sacredness of eagles was also very much preserved on the island-- by the eyrie of golden eagles on the roof of the kings’ palace in Armenelos. Only after the Men of Númenor started to turn away from the Valar and against the Elves did the eagles stop nesting in the middle of the great city. Eagles also hovered over the Meneltarma during the three great prayers dedicated to Eru, and were called the Witnesses of Manwë. A symbol of a great eagle with golden beak and jewelled eyes, the gift of Círdan, perched as an ornament on the prow of Aldarion’s great ship, the Hirilondë.
Now later, as the hearts of the Númenóreans hardened and the bitter division of the King’s Men and the faithful became permanent, eagles were seen as a clear warning sent from Aman itself– especially after Sauron arrived on the island. Eagle-shaped clouds were seen as frightening omens as they gathered storms under their great wings, and right at the very moment when Ar-Pharazôn’s great armada was about to set sail on its fatal voyage to the West, it is said in the Akallabêth that an entire battle-line of Manwë’s eagles flew over the island from the West– with the West burning red behind them and lights glowing under them. This was the Valar’s final warning, and it was not heeded – despite what no doubt was a terrifying sight.
Clearly the eagles were of great significance in the many tales of Arda. Do you have a favorite of these tales of eagle significance? Let us know below!
