Tolkien's Mistakes

[Encaitare]

Nyrende--

Confound these editors! Oh well, I suppose we cannot really blame them; it's heavy task to edit anything of Tolkien's. But I checked the Encyclopedia of Arda and it says he did indeed live to be 210.

[Lalwendë]

I've been meaning to post this possible mistake relating to the weapons of Legolas for some time - it was spotted by my boss, who then had me look up the references to exactly what weapons he had and when. So...is this a mistake?

Bk2 Ch3 - Legolas as he leaves Rivendell:

Legolas had a bow and a quiver, and at his belt a long white knife.

Bk2 Ch8 - Legolas as he leaves Lothlorien:

To Legolas she gave a bow such as the Galadhrim used, longer and stouter than the bows of Mirkwood, and strung with a string of elf-hair. With it went a quiver of arrows.

Note: Galadriel doesn't give him a new knife.

Bk3 Ch6 - Legolas entering Meduseld:

Then Legolas gave into his hand his silver-hafted knife, his quiver, and his bow. 'Keep these well," he said, 'for they come from the Golden Wood and the Lady of Lothlorien gave them to me."
Wonder came into the man's eyes, and he laid the weapons hastily by the wall, as if he feared to handle them. 'No man will touch them, I promise you," he said.

Is this a mistake, or was Tolkien interchanging silver and white as descriptive terms - in that silver can often look almost white when dulled?

[gorthaur_cruel]

Perhaps the blade was white while the haft was silver?

Oh, here's another one...

This is from "A Journey in the Dark" from the Fellowship of the Ring.

The Doors of Durin, Lord of Moria. Speak, friend, and enter. And underneath small and faint is written: I, Narvi, made them, Celebrimbor of Hollin drew these signs.'

Now, this door was made by the Elves Narvi and Celebrimbor from Eregion. This was during the Second Age, while the dwarves of Khazad Dum and Eregion had great friendship. Anybody spot Tolkien's mistake yet?

The name of "Moria" was not given to Khazad-dûm until the Dwarves deserted it; Tolkien says so a few times, but I could only find this from the Silmarillion:

Greatest of all the mansions of the Dwarves was Khazad-dûm, the Dwarrowdelf, Hadhodrond in the Elvish tongue, that was afterwards in the days of its darkness called Moria;

Also, the Encyclopedia of Arda says:

The name 'Moria' is often used as a synonym for Khazad-dûm. This is not strictly correct - 'Moria' was not used of the ancient Dwarf-city until after it was deserted by the Dwarves themselves - but by the late Third Age the two names had come to be used interchangeably.

Anyway, back to my point. The name of Moria was not used until around 1980 of the Third Age. Yet, Celebrimbor, who died 1697 of the Second Age, wrote Moria on the gates of Khazad-dûm before its name was even invented. After all, Moria merely means "Black Chasms", which wouldn't be a name given to the greatest Dwarf city at the time. Even if the Elves called it that secretly, surely the Dwarves wouldn't permit it. So we now have a second seer; Malbeth...and Celebrimbor, the one who foresaw Moria's future!

[Elladan and Elrohir]

Well, remember that Gandalf is translating here. He might be saying "Moria" when the writing actually reads "Hadhodrond". But you're probably right.

And to clarify, Unfinished Tales says that Narvi was a dwarf of Khazad-dum, not an Elf.

[Lush]

Haha, well at least Tolkien wasn't Ann Radcliffe. With all due respect to the true mistress of the pseudo-Gothic novel: her Mysteries of Udolpho was set in the 1500's, yet she wrote of Italians drinking coffee in cafes in Venice in that novel.


Mistakes happen to everyone. Some can be quite funny, actually. The Barad-dur references cracked me up originally. I guess I tried to imagine it...

[gorthaur_cruel]

Well, remember that Gandalf is translating here. He might be saying "Moria" when the writing actually reads "Hadhodrond".

Nope...the actual Elvish writing says this too:

Ennyn Durin Amn Moria: pedo mellon a minno. Im Narvi hain echant: Celebrimbor o Eregion teithant i thiw hin

[willkill4food]

Tolkien made quite a few mistakes in LotR in terms of coherence, and many many more in his other writings. One of the major ones that no one has pointed out so far is the "Nazgual Cant cross the river" and then having a Nazhgal fly overhead. But none of the mistakes that I have found bother me one bit, maybe its because its Tolkein's imaginary universe, and in my opinion, he can do what he pleases.

Cirdan does have a beard, it is not a mistake, but he is the only known elf to have a beard, but he deserves it too, living in the havens for like 7000 years helping other people go to the Undying-Lands while he must stay, all just because he was loyal to his king.

-willkill