I love how Aragorn giving the ring to Arwen symbolizes giving the ring back to the line of Finrod. Arwen was the granddaughter of Galadriel who was the sister of Finrod.
I have been reading and studying and obsessing over the works of J.R.R. Tolkien for over 40 years. This is the best, most complete, and most well thought out description of the Ring of Barahir, it’s lineage, and it’s connections across the ages of middle earth that I have ever heard. Thank you so much for this.
The one downside is that the reason Elrond had the ring was not mentioned. It was passed down by the dunedain rangers father to son as the mark of the heir of Isildur. Sauron knew of the ring and had a bounty on the life of the one who carried it, though foresight led to the handing over of the ring before the death of Arathorn. His wife if I remember correctly with their infant son, Aragorn, took the Ring to Imladris where Aragorn would be fostered and protected until he reached manhood. Again, if memory serves, she died shortly after when Aragorn was only a few years old. Thus the ring was in the hands of Elrond to bestow on Aragorn the badge that would signify him to all other Dunedain still wandering in the north as their lord and commander. Sauron had been bested by the bearer of the ring personally in the first age by Beren having escaped his clutches and leading to the downfall of his first fortress, in the second age by Elindil the tall who vanquished his spirit from his body and Isildur his son who cut Sauron's ring from his hand, and finally Aragorn who helped ensure his defeat and overthrow in the war of the ring. Sauron had a hatred of those who held the Ring of Barahir lasting thousands of years, and actively sent his minions to hunt for it in hopes he could kill off the heirs of the line of the kings.
I wish he would have told the story of how Sauron tricked one of Barahir's men, Gorlim into revealing his location. Its pretty dark and one of the earliest examples of Sauron's evil.
I billion dollars and millions of man-hours went into making the movies, consulting the world's leading experts and fans. Anyone who thinks the makers weren't dedicated are fooling themselves.
@@keaton718 I love the movies, but Christopher Tolkien, THE expert on his father's legendarium, did not like the movies and dismissed them as action movies. So, your statement is not entirely accurate.
@@MyUsualComment I think hundreds of millions of dollars changes people's perceptions on some things. JRR sold the rights for what is today a little over a million, and the Jackson films and franchise have generated close to 10 billion, probably more when all media accounted for. If JRR didn't sell the rights for so little to pay his debts then Christopher would have earned himself and the estate a lot more money from the movies and associated toys and game tie-ins. Christopher may have been THE expert, but he was not and never was THE owner of rights outside of the publication of the books themselves. The books are his realm but all other media exists outside his ownership and that has to taint the feelings of anyone in that situation. JRR made a massive mistake by selling away the rights, he should have found another way to settle his debts.
I think the Ring of Barahir's role when Aragorn confronted Sauron via the Palantir was crucial as well. Beren was wearing that ring when he and Luthien and the hound of Valinor nearly killed Sauron in the First Age. Aragorn showed Sauron all the symbols of the family who had repeatedly beaten him over three ages. And that is what terrified Sauron into making the mistake of attacking Minas Tirith.
No - you are mistaken. Beren was in Sauron's prison when Luthien and Huan (alone) forced Sauron to surrender the secret of his island. Beren had nothing to do with it.
No, she was not. Aragorn wore that ring from the moment his father died. In fact, the only Elf that wore that ring was Finrod Felagund himself when he gave it to Barahir. Even the movies showed Aragorn wearing it. The ring on his second finger of his left hand was the ring of Barahir. She had possession of his banner in both the books and the movies, since she made it in both.@@timber72
Yeah, and he was pissed that nobody else would keep their oath, and instead cower and hide, and let their king go to his death alone. It showed also that Elves, while mighty and wise, were also too passive against Morgoth, unlike Men, who would often be doing guerilla war against any force of evil.(And gain much renown from it.) Kind of like, immortal vs short lives. Immortal will take their time, and wait longer, shorter lives will see more urgency in things.
it does appear that the :Golden House of Finarfin" ended being the noblest, most valiant, and most honorable of Finwe's descendants. Perhaps because of their Vanyar blood? ;)
And each time I think there is nothing left to surprise me in the realms of Tolkien, you surprise me entirely. You, sir, are a gentleman and a scholar.
The more I learned about it, the more I became convinced that the ring of Barahir is one of the most interesting relics in the Legendarium, it has so many layers of history and meaning, it really is the perfect microcosm of how Tolkien worked these things into his world. This is by far the most in-depth exploration of this relic and it's themes that I've seen on youtube, thank you for this.
The more I learn about the book version of Elrond, the more I like him. The movies depicted him not unkindly, but a bit of a prick to Aragorn. The books by contrast paints him almost like a mentor to Aragorn. Not pushing him away, but doing what he could to help Aragorn pull himself up, if that makes sense.
I wouldn't go as far as to say that Elrond didn't feel fondly for Aragorn at all, but certainly a lot of his motivations had more to do with concern for Middle Earth after he and his elven kin left, and wanting to see a great king of men (and relative) back on the thrones of Gondor and Arnor who might at least give Middle Earth a sporting chance once the elves were gone. He simply saw Aragorn as the best of those he had seen come and go over time to fulfill that role (and he had supported and watched them too), probably with a bit of coaxing by Gandalf who perhaps couldn't quite see the future as it were, but had heard the song of creation and could recognize its patterns as time unfolded. They both knew the time had come for some major event to unfold and recognized Aragorn as being the Man at the center of that, and so gave him his full support.
Are you sure? Book Elrond forbade him from marrying his daughter unless he achieved what Elrond deemed impossible, and while he was off doing that, he tried to take his daughter where Aragorn could not follow. Seems like kind of a d*ck move to me.
@@TomsBackyardWorkshop Elrond told Aragorn that he would allow Arwen to marry only the King of Gondor and Arnor. Like with Beren and Luthien this set-in motion a chain of events that resulted in the Fall of Sauron. It also made Aragorn highly resistant to the power of the Ring since what he most wanted; the Ring could not give him.
The look of grief on Elrond’s face when Arwen said she chooses a mortal life makes so much more sense now. How devastating it must’ve been for him to never see her again for the rest of time. Thank you!
Whether or not Elrond thought his conditions for wedding Arwen were achievable, one has to grant that, unlike Thingol, Elrond supported and aided Aragorn to complete his task. And certainly didn't set him a task doomed to cause civil warn amongst elves if it was successful! Personally, I see it as Elrond saying 'unless you rid Middle Earth of Sauron, it's not worth my daughter's eternal life to remain here because what kind of life would either of you have with Sauron as ring-powered lord of all?'. Get rid of Sauron, prove this by becoming King again, and Middle Earth becomes a place of safety and peace in which to have a marriage and family. At that point, he wont stand in their way, no matter the personal pain to him.
Elrond's words set in motion the events leading to the Fall of Sauron. Elrond had spent decades training Aragorn to be ready for the War of Ring. Aragorn's childhood in Rivendell I am sure was not easy. I am sure Elrond, and his people spent many long years training and educating Aragorn.
Something else is that by this time, Elrond basically has nobody else in the world left, but Arwen. I can’t remember if he had other children, but if he did, they’re dead by now. His wife is dead. His brother is dead. His parents are dead. Without his daughter, he becomes truly alone forever.
I actually love that scene. I asked my mom how he could have remembered it that well and she said basically "imagine if you saw someone wearing an American flag. Youd remember"
@@bmetalfish3928that’s only become popular post 90’s. There are actually laws discouraging people from wearing thé flag… Americans just don’t give a shit
@@bmetalfish3928 as a 5-6 year old it was I who had never met a person who wore something so recognizable. She used the best example of somethimg that I would recognize with historic significance thats also intricate enough to have fine details because i didn't know anything at the time. Can you think of a better example she could have used cause i honestly can't.
My husband’s wedding ring is a replica of Aragorn’s, with real emeralds. Which works also because it’s my birthstone. ☺️ My wedding ring is reminiscent of Nenya. 😊
Just be careful to not get yourselves accused of thievery if you ever run into any hobbits who still remember the old tales from the Red Book. There are still some lingering in the woods of the backcountry, i'm told, though they are becoming harder and harder to find.
@@AmaraJordanMusic - You'd be surprised. They're clever little things. One repeatedly outsmarted a dragon, another one accidentally riddled himself into a valuable prize, and another brought a ghostly king down to size for his friend to shank.
Your last sentence is very important - love, trust, friendship, faith are more important than power. Those are the real magic in Tolkien's world. As are fear, desperation. Emotions are the magic, emotions that drive people hearts to do good. Not some stupid fireballs, ice bolts or other crap, but fear - as in case of Nazghuls or faith as in case of Gandalf.
Since the serpents were given the same setting to the direwolf/lion from the GoT series , i believe a line from Varys is appropriate. " Power resides where men believe it resides" ... it might not have been a ring of power but it was a symbol of royal bloodlines and followed acts of courage , love and friendship ... Given that those were the top ranking values in the story , i believe its safe to say that this was a ring of "power" after all
I think you miss an important distinction. The rings of power have powers themselves, that pass from wearer to wearer regardless of relationship, alignment, etc. Barahirs power was not in itself, but what it reminded people of. It reminds people of its history, and its selfless wearers before it. The rings of power are also linked to the one ring, and when it is destroyed they also lose their power.
Thank you so much Robert for retelling the stories of Tolkien‘s Legendarium. Daily lives, and work to keep us from ever grasping the deeper meaning of the stories.
This was fascinating, thanks! Nice discussion of contrast at the end there with the other Ring as well, it’s interesting that the One Ring was something coveted and kept but usually taken by force or trickery and finally destroyed, while Barahir’s ring was always given freely as a gift, and endured for ages.
Yeah, I agree - Elrond’s hoop to bless the marriage of Aragorn and Arwen was a knowing “not until you’ve lived up to the destiny and potential I know you have - no slacking!” as opposed to Thingol’s hoop for Beren and Luthien which was “not until you complete this task I know to be impossible and I 100% expect to get you killed”.
Another great video! I have read this somewhere about the time Aragorn looked into the Palantir and fought with Sauron in his mind, it was not only seeing the Narsil but also the ring he remembers being worn by Beren that struck fear into Sauron. But now you point out the ring was given to Arwen at their betrothal which was before the main events of LOTR so that would have not been the case... Cool idea though (and at least fits with the scene in the movie as he wears the ring throughout)
That one at 1:30 is so good. I've got one very, very close to it. But I think that one's better, closer yet to the description. I had one like Aragorn wore in the movie, but it isn't near as accurate.
great as always. Would love if you make something about kingdom formation from RoP (so abit before fighting Sauron) till the beginning of LotR, like how did Rohan became an indepent kingdom, what human empire rules over Bree? Did the humans living around the shire had an army, fought a battle during the ring wars? Something like that would be great. Also same with the dwarves would be really cool to better understand where they came from and how their tribes divided and migrated throuh the centuries.
Gotta appreciate how if this ring symbolizes love then having it like twin snakes makes it look rad and yet elegant at the time. You'd usually think a dove or a rose would do. But tolkien was definitely ahead in his time.
I've been listening to chapters of the Silmarillion to fall asleep to lately, so I appreciate these lore summaries (to fall asleep to) (but seriously, I love it, I just also find it very calming)
The Ring of Barahir: a perpetual symbol of friendship between Men and Elves (and also of Sauron taking massive L after L from the same family of Men). That ring was on the hand that cut the Silmaril from Morgoth's Iron Crown and held the gem aloft. It is likely the only existing object in Middle Earth during the Third Age to have physically made contact with a Silmaril.
Love this video. No one every points out how inaccurate the ring in the movies is. The latest magic the gathering cards ironically display the ring as is should be despite completely getting Aragorn himself wrong.
recently on a "play videos in the background while [activities]" kick, and these are so much more wholesome than listening about endless amounts of divers running out of oxygen in narrow caves...
I'm not much for jewelry anymore, but I love the symbolism and beauty of the jewelry of great stories. My only knowledge of Tolkien's stories are from the movies and TH-cam, and at my age, with my eyesight being bad, I don't know if I ever will read the books. I'm really enjoying these videos, and thank you very much for making them.
There are many things that I'm happy that "Rings of Power" brought into the "Middle Earth" discussion circles and imagery. The images of Numenor are some, but also a representation of Elendil.
the depiction of numenorians however... ech. and no nothing to do with incel shit it's just they were supposed to be this almost elven quality of culture and society but it's just another "gritty" group of mainly racists
the depiction of numenorians however... ech. and no nothing to do with incel shit it's just they were supposed to be this almost elven quality of culture and society but it's just another "gritty" group of mainly racists
"Are these the ways of Thingol's Hall?" is kinda a sick burn, but loses it's sting as soon as you consider how the Dwarves of Nogrod were treated.........
What an interesting thread tying so much of the lore together! All while the ring holds no inherent power. I find that detail to make it all the more interesting.
I like how th ring of Barahir is also the antithesis of the One Ring As one is powerfull the other is powerless As one is always taken away by force, muder or trechary one is giving away as a gift. As one is always trying to go to his master, the other is returned to it, by mere chance. And as a one is a symbol of dominace, control and pride, the other one is a symbol of humbleness, protection and free will.
12:33 Actually, some 60-65 greats tagged on. Can't remember the exact number, but I would chuckle over the image of a very young Aragorn, when he found out that Elrond is his Great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-uncle.
The severed hand of Barahir [5:40] and Finrod's self sacrifice [8:30] are elements of a Prose Edda tale: "...the Æsir were luring Fenriswolf so as to get the fetter Gleipnir on him, he did not trust them... until they placed Tyr's hand in the wolf's mouth as a pledge. And when the Æsir refused to let him go then he bit off the hand at the place that is now called the wer-joint [wrist]..." Where Romans saw the red planet as War (Mars->mardi), the English saw the Oath-keeper (Tiu's-day) binding War/Fenris until the Twilight of the gods (Ragnorok).
Lovely video, Robert. I only bother mentioning this because you strike me as someone who cares. “Eskimo” is a derogatory term. It is considered a pejorative by the Inuit, Yupik, Aleut, and other native nations.
Any chance of a deep dive into the relationship of Idril and Tuor? It seems different to the other elf/man pairings, especially since it alludes to the man being counted as one of the Eldar, rather than the elf becoming mortal.
It kind of goes even deeper than that, it's basically the opposite of a ring of power. The rings of power are traps, each one promises great power that can be used for whatever one desires, but each are both controlled by the master ring and they also each represent an object of greed, something that every owner covets more than life itself. By comparison, this ring is freely given, over and over again. And with each time its own power grows. It has held the power to stop even swords and arrows, not through magic but through respect and friendship.
It is also worth noting that this is perhaps the only ring that Sauron feared. Whenever he picked a fight with it’s ring bearer, he eventually lost
I love how Aragorn giving the ring to Arwen symbolizes giving the ring back to the line of Finrod. Arwen was the granddaughter of Galadriel who was the sister of Finrod.
Ooh, nice catch!
Elven ladies are pretty cool. You can look at a grandma and at the granddaughter together and still think theyre sisters😂
You also should consider that Elrond is Aragorn's uncle and Arwen is his cousin. Roll Tide
@@jimeponcho cue LOTR theme but with banjos
@@jimeponcho lmao don’t ruin this for me
I have been reading and studying and obsessing over the works of J.R.R. Tolkien for over 40 years. This is the best, most complete, and most well thought out description of the Ring of Barahir, it’s lineage, and it’s connections across the ages of middle earth that I have ever heard. Thank you so much for this.
The one downside is that the reason Elrond had the ring was not mentioned.
It was passed down by the dunedain rangers father to son as the mark of the heir of Isildur. Sauron knew of the ring and had a bounty on the life of the one who carried it, though foresight led to the handing over of the ring before the death of Arathorn. His wife if I remember correctly with their infant son, Aragorn, took the Ring to Imladris where Aragorn would be fostered and protected until he reached manhood. Again, if memory serves, she died shortly after when Aragorn was only a few years old. Thus the ring was in the hands of Elrond to bestow on Aragorn the badge that would signify him to all other Dunedain still wandering in the north as their lord and commander.
Sauron had been bested by the bearer of the ring personally in the first age by Beren having escaped his clutches and leading to the downfall of his first fortress, in the second age by Elindil the tall who vanquished his spirit from his body and Isildur his son who cut Sauron's ring from his hand, and finally Aragorn who helped ensure his defeat and overthrow in the war of the ring. Sauron had a hatred of those who held the Ring of Barahir lasting thousands of years, and actively sent his minions to hunt for it in hopes he could kill off the heirs of the line of the kings.
Nerd… jk we are all nerds here
@@andrewstewart62 or Tolkien Fiends....
So good.
I wish he would have told the story of how Sauron tricked one of Barahir's men, Gorlim into revealing his location. Its pretty dark and one of the earliest examples of Sauron's evil.
The fact the movies included this ring, proves how much love and dedication went into their making.
Oh brother.
@@timber72oh kay
I billion dollars and millions of man-hours went into making the movies, consulting the world's leading experts and fans. Anyone who thinks the makers weren't dedicated are fooling themselves.
@@keaton718 I love the movies, but Christopher Tolkien, THE expert on his father's legendarium, did not like the movies and dismissed them as action movies. So, your statement is not entirely accurate.
@@MyUsualComment I think hundreds of millions of dollars changes people's perceptions on some things. JRR sold the rights for what is today a little over a million, and the Jackson films and franchise have generated close to 10 billion, probably more when all media accounted for. If JRR didn't sell the rights for so little to pay his debts then Christopher would have earned himself and the estate a lot more money from the movies and associated toys and game tie-ins. Christopher may have been THE expert, but he was not and never was THE owner of rights outside of the publication of the books themselves. The books are his realm but all other media exists outside his ownership and that has to taint the feelings of anyone in that situation. JRR made a massive mistake by selling away the rights, he should have found another way to settle his debts.
I think the Ring of Barahir's role when Aragorn confronted Sauron via the Palantir was crucial as well. Beren was wearing that ring when he and Luthien and the hound of Valinor nearly killed Sauron in the First Age. Aragorn showed Sauron all the symbols of the family who had repeatedly beaten him over three ages. And that is what terrified Sauron into making the mistake of attacking Minas Tirith.
No - you are mistaken. Beren was in Sauron's prison when Luthien and Huan (alone) forced Sauron to surrender the secret of his island. Beren had nothing to do with it.
@@dandiehm8414 Not only that, but Arwen was in possession of the ring of Barahir at the time.
No, she was not. Aragorn wore that ring from the moment his father died.
In fact, the only Elf that wore that ring was Finrod Felagund himself when he gave it to Barahir. Even the movies showed Aragorn wearing it. The ring on his second finger of his left hand was the ring of Barahir.
She had possession of his banner in both the books and the movies, since she made it in both.@@timber72
@@shauntempley9757 correct
@@shauntempley9757Finrod, not Fingolfin (who was uncle to Finrod) of a different subhouse of Finwe
Finrod is my favorite Elf. He repaid his oath by sacrificing himself for Beren to escape.
One of the noblest Noldor ever, if not the most.
Yeah, and he was pissed that nobody else would keep their oath, and instead cower and hide, and let their king go to his death alone.
It showed also that Elves, while mighty and wise, were also too passive against Morgoth, unlike Men, who would often be doing guerilla war against any force of evil.(And gain much renown from it.)
Kind of like, immortal vs short lives. Immortal will take their time, and wait longer, shorter lives will see more urgency in things.
it does appear that the :Golden House of Finarfin" ended being the noblest, most valiant, and most honorable of Finwe's descendants. Perhaps because of their Vanyar blood? ;)
Mine too :). A gentle elf
He also breaks the stereotype of frail, waifish elves by *_killing a giant wolf with his teeth and bare hands_*
@@Mare_Man1st and 2nd age elves were more powerful than 3rd age elves. By the end of the 3rd age the time of men has arrived.
And each time I think there is nothing left to surprise me in the realms of Tolkien, you surprise me entirely. You, sir, are a gentleman and a scholar.
I agree! Robert is wonderful and so smart!
Another channel you can dive into is Tolkien untangled , you'll get your mind blown over there
The more I learned about it, the more I became convinced that the ring of Barahir is one of the most interesting relics in the Legendarium, it has so many layers of history and meaning, it really is the perfect microcosm of how Tolkien worked these things into his world. This is by far the most in-depth exploration of this relic and it's themes that I've seen on youtube, thank you for this.
The more I learn about the book version of Elrond, the more I like him. The movies depicted him not unkindly, but a bit of a prick to Aragorn. The books by contrast paints him almost like a mentor to Aragorn. Not pushing him away, but doing what he could to help Aragorn pull himself up, if that makes sense.
The movies doesnt have enough time to show their past and friendship
I wouldn't go as far as to say that Elrond didn't feel fondly for Aragorn at all, but certainly a lot of his motivations had more to do with concern for Middle Earth after he and his elven kin left, and wanting to see a great king of men (and relative) back on the thrones of Gondor and Arnor who might at least give Middle Earth a sporting chance once the elves were gone. He simply saw Aragorn as the best of those he had seen come and go over time to fulfill that role (and he had supported and watched them too), probably with a bit of coaxing by Gandalf who perhaps couldn't quite see the future as it were, but had heard the song of creation and could recognize its patterns as time unfolded. They both knew the time had come for some major event to unfold and recognized Aragorn as being the Man at the center of that, and so gave him his full support.
@@KelnxI somewhat disagree. Elrond raised Aragorn, and loved him like a son. He did not love him for his "political worth", but as a son.
Are you sure? Book Elrond forbade him from marrying his daughter unless he achieved what Elrond deemed impossible, and while he was off doing that, he tried to take his daughter where Aragorn could not follow. Seems like kind of a d*ck move to me.
@@TomsBackyardWorkshop Elrond told Aragorn that he would allow Arwen to marry only the King of Gondor and Arnor. Like with Beren and Luthien this set-in motion a chain of events that resulted in the Fall of Sauron. It also made Aragorn highly resistant to the power of the Ring since what he most wanted; the Ring could not give him.
The look of grief on Elrond’s face when Arwen said she chooses a mortal life makes so much more sense now. How devastating it must’ve been for him to never see her again for the rest of time. Thank you!
Well no one knows what will happen when Morgoth returns again and the battle at end of time. Thats a long time to wait though 😂
I still can't get over how perfect your voiceovers are. The commentaries are superb. Well done sir, well done.
Whether or not Elrond thought his conditions for wedding Arwen were achievable, one has to grant that, unlike Thingol, Elrond supported and aided Aragorn to complete his task. And certainly didn't set him a task doomed to cause civil warn amongst elves if it was successful!
Personally, I see it as Elrond saying 'unless you rid Middle Earth of Sauron, it's not worth my daughter's eternal life to remain here because what kind of life would either of you have with Sauron as ring-powered lord of all?'. Get rid of Sauron, prove this by becoming King again, and Middle Earth becomes a place of safety and peace in which to have a marriage and family. At that point, he wont stand in their way, no matter the personal pain to him.
Elrond's words set in motion the events leading to the Fall of Sauron. Elrond had spent decades training Aragorn to be ready for the War of Ring. Aragorn's childhood in Rivendell I am sure was not easy. I am sure Elrond, and his people spent many long years training and educating Aragorn.
Something else is that by this time, Elrond basically has nobody else in the world left, but Arwen. I can’t remember if he had other children, but if he did, they’re dead by now. His wife is dead. His brother is dead. His parents are dead. Without his daughter, he becomes truly alone forever.
@@Mortablunt Elrond had two sons, Elladan and Elrohir.
Elronds wife, Celebrian, has already sailed to Valinor, she is still alive.
@@MortabluntHis twin sons are just fine, they arrived with the Grey Company to help Aragorn.
absolutely beautiful. I love your analysis. You're true to the deep essence of Tolkien through and through. Also, lovely attention to detail.
Ahh yes, the ring that proved Grima Wormtongue had a photographic memory.
I actually love that scene. I asked my mom how he could have remembered it that well and she said basically "imagine if you saw someone wearing an American flag. Youd remember"
Ofcourse, he's a mentat from Dune.
@@aidenharper6013 has your mom never met an american, because all sorts of people wear flags here.
@@bmetalfish3928that’s only become popular post 90’s. There are actually laws discouraging people from wearing thé flag… Americans just don’t give a shit
@@bmetalfish3928 as a 5-6 year old it was I who had never met a person who wore something so recognizable. She used the best example of somethimg that I would recognize with historic significance thats also intricate enough to have fine details because i didn't know anything at the time. Can you think of a better example she could have used cause i honestly can't.
12:58 Fantastic poetry reading here! I was captivated, and Tolkien’s poetry isn’t simple to read. Well done!
My husband’s wedding ring is a replica of Aragorn’s, with real emeralds. Which works also because it’s my birthstone. ☺️ My wedding ring is reminiscent of Nenya. 😊
Just be careful to not get yourselves accused of thievery if you ever run into any hobbits who still remember the old tales from the Red Book. There are still some lingering in the woods of the backcountry, i'm told, though they are becoming harder and harder to find.
@@IngoSchwarze My husband is twice as tall as a hobbit, a longshanks indeed. Unless they mob him, I think he’ll do okay. 😅
@@AmaraJordanMusic - You'd be surprised. They're clever little things. One repeatedly outsmarted a dragon, another one accidentally riddled himself into a valuable prize, and another brought a ghostly king down to size for his friend to shank.
@@schadenfreude3236Yes, Hobbits are very clever. And never to be underestimated.
Nerdddddd 😂❤
Have you ever thought about making audiobooks for the lord of the rings or game of thrones, your voice is quite soothing and easy to listen to
He can't for copyright reasons, but he has an audiobook channel called the well told tale.
Your last sentence is very important - love, trust, friendship, faith are more important than power. Those are the real magic in Tolkien's world. As are fear, desperation. Emotions are the magic, emotions that drive people hearts to do good. Not some stupid fireballs, ice bolts or other crap, but fear - as in case of Nazghuls or faith as in case of Gandalf.
It is never a tiring thing to hear such soothing and eloquent elucidation of such an expansive and masterful legendariam :>
Since the serpents were given the same setting to the direwolf/lion from the GoT series , i believe a line from Varys is appropriate. " Power resides where men believe it resides" ... it might not have been a ring of power but it was a symbol of royal bloodlines and followed acts of courage , love and friendship ...
Given that those were the top ranking values in the story , i believe its safe to say that this was a ring of "power" after all
High magic items, low magic setting
Indeed. An 'item of power' doesn't need to be actually magical, it can simply be a symbol of the power of the person or faction.
I think you miss an important distinction. The rings of power have powers themselves, that pass from wearer to wearer regardless of relationship, alignment, etc. Barahirs power was not in itself, but what it reminded people of. It reminds people of its history, and its selfless wearers before it. The rings of power are also linked to the one ring, and when it is destroyed they also lose their power.
Thank you so much Robert for retelling the stories of Tolkien‘s Legendarium. Daily lives, and work to keep us from ever grasping the deeper meaning of the stories.
All your passion transpares through your videos and makes them really unique to watch. Keep it up.
This was fascinating, thanks! Nice discussion of contrast at the end there with the other Ring as well, it’s interesting that the One Ring was something coveted and kept but usually taken by force or trickery and finally destroyed, while Barahir’s ring was always given freely as a gift, and endured for ages.
Tolkien’s use language is nothing less than beautiful. That’s why he’s the professor and that’s what distinguishes his work from other fantasy.
Mind blowing how ancient it was. Thanks for the deep dive
One of your best videos of all time.
9:27 "...someone we all know, Elendil." Of course, of course. (me who stumbled here randomly)
and they made him a “petty lord” in RoP, to think he should be cousin to Queen Miriel who didn’t know of him till they met in court.
Great to see you making longer videos. 15+min. Really enjoying these!
What a great essay. Thank you Robert!
More great content. THANKS!
If I should ever need a VO artist, you’re the first call I’ll make…
You told a beautiful and inspiring story about what is most important in life: love, giving, sharing, and meaningful care for others.
Definitely one of your best episodes. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Thank you!
The ring cartwheeling across the screen was jarringly hilarious
I love these videos and really appreciate all the work that you put into researching and making them - thank you
I just watched the extended trilogy this weekend and I was curious about this ring after Saruman looked it up in one of his books. Thanks!
Yeah, I agree - Elrond’s hoop to bless the marriage of Aragorn and Arwen was a knowing “not until you’ve lived up to the destiny and potential I know you have - no slacking!” as opposed to Thingol’s hoop for Beren and Luthien which was “not until you complete this task I know to be impossible and I 100% expect to get you killed”.
Another great video! I have read this somewhere about the time Aragorn looked into the Palantir and fought with Sauron in his mind, it was not only seeing the Narsil but also the ring he remembers being worn by Beren that struck fear into Sauron. But now you point out the ring was given to Arwen at their betrothal which was before the main events of LOTR so that would have not been the case... Cool idea though (and at least fits with the scene in the movie as he wears the ring throughout)
maybe the betrothal came after they won and Elrond allowed it. So makes sense that he’s wearing it throughout the fight
That one at 1:30 is so good. I've got one very, very close to it. But I think that one's better, closer yet to the description. I had one like Aragorn wore in the movie, but it isn't near as accurate.
Well done Robert. Well done.
great as always. Would love if you make something about kingdom formation from RoP (so abit before fighting Sauron) till the beginning of LotR, like how did Rohan became an indepent kingdom, what human empire rules over Bree? Did the humans living around the shire had an army, fought a battle during the ring wars? Something like that would be great. Also same with the dwarves would be really cool to better understand where they came from and how their tribes divided and migrated throuh the centuries.
the scale and depth of tolkein's effort at world any myth building is always staggering
Gotta appreciate how if this ring symbolizes love then having it like twin snakes makes it look rad and yet elegant at the time. You'd usually think a dove or a rose would do. But tolkien was definitely ahead in his time.
I’m excited to hear about this and your channel again.
I've been listening to chapters of the Silmarillion to fall asleep to lately, so I appreciate these lore summaries (to fall asleep to)
(but seriously, I love it, I just also find it very calming)
The Ring of Barahir: a perpetual symbol of friendship between Men and Elves (and also of Sauron taking massive L after L from the same family of Men).
That ring was on the hand that cut the Silmaril from Morgoth's Iron Crown and held the gem aloft. It is likely the only existing object in Middle Earth during the Third Age to have physically made contact with a Silmaril.
I greatly appreciate all that you do. Wonderful video!
Excellent video! The story of the Ring of Barahir is one of the lesser known tales from the Legendarium.
Beautifully written and read. Ty!
This was truly unknown to me and a very special video ❤
Love this video. No one every points out how inaccurate the ring in the movies is. The latest magic the gathering cards ironically display the ring as is should be despite completely getting Aragorn himself wrong.
It is nice to learn that there is an important ring in that story that is allowed to be just that: A ring.
recently on a "play videos in the background while [activities]" kick, and these are so much more wholesome than listening about endless amounts of divers running out of oxygen in narrow caves...
Great video !! There is so much fascinating lore!
That was an excellent telling of the story.
Wow! Well done.
My favorite bit of lore from Tolkien. Thank you.
Wonderful narration of a great story!!!
Loved this story mate! Great video
I'm not much for jewelry anymore, but I love the symbolism and beauty of the jewelry of great stories. My only knowledge of Tolkien's stories are from the movies and TH-cam, and at my age, with my eyesight being bad, I don't know if I ever will read the books. I'm really enjoying these videos, and thank you very much for making them.
Dude, You’re awesome! That was more than worth my time!!!
Love this. Thank you!!
Love your stuff homie
There are many things that I'm happy that "Rings of Power" brought into the "Middle Earth" discussion circles and imagery. The images of Numenor are some, but also a representation of Elendil.
the depiction of numenorians however... ech. and no nothing to do with incel shit it's just they were supposed to be this almost elven quality of culture and society but it's just another "gritty" group of mainly racists
the depiction of numenorians however... ech. and no nothing to do with incel shit it's just they were supposed to be this almost elven quality of culture and society but it's just another "gritty" group of mainly racists
"Are these the ways of Thingol's Hall?" is kinda a sick burn, but loses it's sting as soon as you consider how the Dwarves of Nogrod were treated.........
"Nogrod."
@@timber72 Thank you! Fixed. :)
A beautiful episode man, I'm a new subscriber and this channel is awesome
Absolutely wonderful. Thank you.
It was magical in once sense, in that it never wore-down and never tarnished, remaining "forever-bright and unmarred by wear or time".
What an interesting thread tying so much of the lore together! All while the ring holds no inherent power. I find that detail to make it all the more interesting.
It also foreshadows the union of Finrod and Barahir’s houses through Arwen’s mother; Finrod’s niece, Celebrían.
This was the best lore dump ever. Aragon is Elrond's Great Great Great Great x30 Nephew.
I like how th ring of Barahir is also the antithesis of the One Ring
As one is powerfull the other is powerless
As one is always taken away by force, muder or trechary one is giving away as a gift.
As one is always trying to go to his master, the other is returned to it, by mere chance.
And as a one is a symbol of dominace, control and pride, the other one is a symbol of humbleness, protection and free will.
12:33
Actually, some 60-65 greats tagged on. Can't remember the exact number, but I would chuckle over the image of a very young Aragorn, when he found out that Elrond is his Great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-uncle.
What a great tale!
That lay is 🔥🔥🔥
A very good video, as always.
Thank you for this video.
Wonderful Story. Elegant Narration. Superb Presentation.
Excellent rob. Excellent
It's unbelievable the breadth and detail that Tolkien created.
The severed hand of Barahir [5:40] and Finrod's self sacrifice [8:30] are elements of a Prose Edda tale: "...the Æsir were luring Fenriswolf so as to get the fetter Gleipnir on him, he did not trust them... until they placed Tyr's hand in the wolf's mouth as a pledge. And when the Æsir refused to let him go then he bit off the hand at the place that is now called the wer-joint [wrist]..."
Where Romans saw the red planet as War (Mars->mardi),
the English saw the Oath-keeper (Tiu's-day) binding War/Fenris
until the Twilight of the gods (Ragnorok).
You have a lovely way with words.
Imagine the research In Deep Geek had to do to trace the history of this particular ring. Oh my!
Lovely video, Robert. I only bother mentioning this because you strike me as someone who cares. “Eskimo” is a derogatory term. It is considered a pejorative by the Inuit, Yupik, Aleut, and other native nations.
I was unaware thank you for that information
Incredibly good story. It is vital in the context of understanding Tolkien's world, imo.
How did Tolkein write this. I could live one hundred thousand years and never even touch the middle earth masterpiece
He was writing and rewriting the base history for his whole life and the main books are a blip during that
It is a magical ring in the sense that friendship and love are magical.
Excellent video. Just nice to watch last before sleep. 😴😌😴
Excellent comtent, thank you gor this
Keep up the great work mate😊
Outstanding!👌
I love Saruman's face when Grima describes the ring on Aragorns finger in PJs movies.
very well done!
Flippin great video
Any chance of a deep dive into the relationship of Idril and Tuor? It seems different to the other elf/man pairings, especially since it alludes to the man being counted as one of the Eldar, rather than the elf becoming mortal.
Alas - I don't think there is much info available anywhere on that subject.
Lovely analysis 👌
Epic video!
It kind of goes even deeper than that, it's basically the opposite of a ring of power. The rings of power are traps, each one promises great power that can be used for whatever one desires, but each are both controlled by the master ring and they also each represent an object of greed, something that every owner covets more than life itself.
By comparison, this ring is freely given, over and over again. And with each time its own power grows.
It has held the power to stop even swords and arrows, not through magic but through respect and friendship.
this is fantastic
The deepest of deep
Excellent video