#gondolin

[balrogballs]

TURGON OF GONDOLIN

An illustration style rendition of Turgon for @ignotr, as commissioned in February by @the-other-side-of-mirkwood 🥰 I really enjoyed hyperfixating on this one, especially with the embroidery and general white roses theme, his relative… er, turgidity, and everyone knows I love a good grey streak. Prosthetic fingers from the Helcaraxë years as well! Also @peasant-player pattern making a reappearance on his sash 🥰

commissioning details

[sakasakiii]

an attempt at drawing almost every named character in the silmarillion (minus a bunch of Men characters bc i didnt have designs for them, as well as assorted minor elves like salgant or elenmire + the valar and most maiar cuz im still redesigning them) 😙

been really busy these past months but i worked on this on and off in-between (you can see a process gif here!!). since ive got a bit of free time for now, ill try to get back to being more active :D sorry for disappearing out of the blue again but happy almost half a year... wait wdym we're almost halfway through 2025 already...?!?! ToT

edit: just in case there is trouble viewing the picture in high resolution (idk if tumblr is compressing the quality or anything haha), here is a link to it uploaded on pixiv where (i hope!!!) there should be no problem 🤞

[irithyllians]

rog, house of the hammer of wrath

[misswhalie]

Ecthelion | Lord of the Fountains

[kimbapkimi]

Lord of The Golden Flower

Finally finished Glorfindel.

More & earlier updates on my Patreon.

[virgil-upinthestars]

the landing of the host of the west, f.a. 545, colorized

[whirlception]

I would personally argue that the enduring Elvish political division in the 2nd and 3rd Ages is not "Sindar vs Noldor" but rather "Sirion vs Balar (and, uncomfortably, Amon Ereb)" -- that is, the remnants of the peoples of Beleriand who were largely isolationist vs those who -- by either choice and ability-- were not.

Notably, Sirion is the explicit destination of:

The refugees of Gondolin, an extremely isolationist polity which did not contribute to the Siege of Angband; did not respond to the Dagor Bragollach, despite their proximity to Tol Sirion; did not admit refugees; and only barely joined the Union of Maedhros. I don't give Turgon much credit for this, because as narratively dramatic as an unannounced relief force is, Turgon denied Fingon and Maedhros the opportunity to plan the battle with the addition of his forces. The western front may not have been the best place for them to be!

The refugees of Doriath, a polity which spent nearly the entire span of Morgoth's residence in Beleriand isolated behind the Girdle, and benefited immensely from the safety brought by the Siege of Angband without contributing anything to it. I am inclined to believe that, considering Thingol's stated distrust of the Northern Sindar, his ban on the Noldor entering Doriath, and the explicit notation that the refugees of Nargothrond were allowed to come to Doriath, that he was not opening his borders to anyone except them.

It is also the likeliest destination for many of the refugees of Nargothrond, who fled to Doriath after Glaurung's attack -- and after Orodreth's ascension to the throne, Nargothrond was increasingly secretive and isolationist and did not join the Union of Maedhros even at Fingon's command. After the Nirnaeth they "did not suffer" other elves to cross their lands, and Annael (Tuor's Mithrim foster-father) ends up in Balar so they were likely turning away all refugees -- and this despite Orodreth's wife canonically being Northern Sindar.

Balar, on the other hand, was the explicit destination of:

The Falathrim under Círdan, who were closely connected to both Nargothrond and the Fingolfinian strongholds in Mithrim

The Northern Sindar of Hithlum, who were vassals of Fingolfin and Fingon (under no known singular leader)

And regardless of whether you accept Gil-Galad son of Fingon or Gil-Galad son of Orodreth, it's very likely that as the seat of the High King of the Noldor, Balar was also home to the Noldorin remnants of Fingon's host that didn't (presumably) get swept up into the Fëanorian forces following the Nirnaeth Arnoediad, which at that point would have included the remnants of the Aegnor and Angrod's forces from Dorthonion, Fingolfin's forces, and Fingon's own forces.

Amon Ereb, which I think is broadly aligned with "Balar" on the "Balar vs Sirion" scale, but probably uncomfortably so (especially after the 2nd and 3rd Kinslayings), was of course host to the remnants of the Noldorin and Sindarin forces of Himlad/Himring/Thargelion, plus a large contingent of the Northern Sindar who were outriders in the plains and highlands of the northeast. The Green-elves of Ossiriand were likely split between the two camps or purposefully neutral.

How does this map onto the political landscape of the 2nd / 3rd Ages? The elven realms east of the Misty Mountains (the Greenwood and Lothlorien) are implied to have a distinctly different character from those west of the Misty Mountains (Eregion, Lindon, and Imladris) despite both being noted to have Noldor & Sindar mixing.

IMO the easiest way to reconcile this is to assume that east of the Misty Mountains, "Sirion" prevails-- this is where the "Sindar princes of the Silvan elves" (Celeborn and Oropher->Thranduil) rule, and most Noldor present are largely Gondolidrim or from Nargothrond. Any Green-elves who were incredibly opposed to the rule of the Noldor likely migrated in this direction to their ancestral homes near the Anduin.

West of the Misty Mountains, on the other hand, I assume that "Balar" largely prevails-- this is where Gil-Galad rules, and where the Sindar of Hithlum, the Falas, and the northern plains --and the remaining Fingolfinian, Dorthonion, Fëanorion Noldor, and some fraction of the Gondolidrim-- spread out in complex ways between Lindon (which encompasses remnants of both Ossiriand and Thargelion), Eregion, and Imladris. It's likely that Harlindon specifically-- one of the last remmants of Ossiriand-- is home to a large body of Green-elves who will not be parted from their homes, but who may have wildly varying opinions on Noldorin rule and ... the 1st Age in general.

(Side note: I do think this works with Gil-Galad son of Orodreth, by the way. It just requires his mother, a woman of the Northern Sindar, to be uncomfortable with her husband's isolationism and refusal of refugees and leave with her son when he's sent to foster/safety on Balar, and for Gil-Galad to identify more with his mother's people -- and by extension, the Fingolfinian and, more uncomfortably, Fëanorian Noldor with whom they had long relationships-- than Nargothrond).

[micelilies]

Glorfindel