Anglachel
| Anglachel | |
|---|---|
| Weapon | |
 | |
| "Eöl's Swords" by María Lombide Ezpeleta | |
| Location | Nan Elmoth, Menegroth |
| Owner | Thingol, Beleg, Túrin |
| Appearance | A glowing black blade that could slice through iron; forged from a meteorite |
| Creator | Eöl Nan Elmoth, First Age |
| Destroyed | Reforged as Gurthang |
| Notable for | killing of Beleg by Túrin |
| Gallery | Images of Anglachel |
- "[Anglachel] was a sword of great worth, and it was so named because it was made of iron that fell from heaven as a blazing star; it would cleave all earth-delved iron."
- ― Quenta Silmarillion, "Of Túrin Turambar"
Anglachel was the sword forged by Eöl the Dark Elf from a meteorite. Its mate was Anguirel. The blade was black but also glowed and was so hard that it could easily slice through iron. It was said that it was imbued with Eöl's malice and was apparently sentient.
History[edit]
Eöl gave Anglachel to his lord, King Thingol of Doriath, as payment for letting him dwell in the Forest of Nan Elmoth. Thingol would not bear it, as Melian warned him that there was malice in the blade, so it stayed in the armoury of Menegroth.
In F.A. 487, Thingol allowed Beleg Strongbow to take any weapon in his search of his friend Túrin, and he took Anglachel. However, Beleg would not return to Doriath after finding Túrin, and would fight by his side in the following years.
Once their emplacement was destroyed by Morgoth's armies, Beleg tracked down the Orcs taking Túrin captive to Angband and in the dead of night, sought to free him in secret. But when he used Anglachel to cut the bonds of Túrin, due to the spite of its forger it slipped and pricked the unconscious body of Túrin. Awakening from his stupor, Túrin thought the Orcs had returned to torture him, and during the struggle he slew Beleg with the blade. After the fight, Anglachel's edges became dull and turned a dead black and for that time ceased to glow with a 'pale fire'. This was attributed to its apparent sentience as Anglachel was in a state of mourning over the slaying of Beleg.
Túrin later reforged the sword with the help of the smiths of Nargothrond. The blade remained black, however, and Túrin renamed it Gurthang, meaning 'Iron of Death', and it would become his reknown sword thereafter.[1]
Etymology[edit]
Christopher Tolkien notes that Anglachel contains the Sindarin elements ang ("iron") and lhach ("leaping flame").[2] Given that the last element is clearly êl ("star"), Paul Strack glosses the name as "Iron of the flaming star".[3]
See also[edit]
References
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Silmarillion, "Quenta Silmarillion: Of Túrin Turambar"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Silmarillion, "Appendix: Elements in Quenya and Sindarin Names", entries ang, lhach
- ↑ Paul Strack, "S. Anglachel pn.", Eldamo - An Elvish Lexicon (accessed 6 December 2022)
| Weapons of Middle-earth |
| Aeglos · Andúril · Anglachel · Angrist · Anguirel · Aranrúth · Belthronding · Black Arrow · Bow of Bregor · Bow of the Galadhrim · Daggers of Westernesse · Dagmor · Dailir · Dramborleg · Durin's Axe · Glamdring · Grond · Gúthwinë · Gurthang · Herugrim · Morgul-knife · Narsil · Orcrist · Red Arrow · Ringil · Sting |
