LotR -- Book 6 - Chapter 7 - Homeward Bound

[Formendacil]

Originally Posted by Estelyn Telcontar

Another detail I noticed this time – the White Wizard is wearing a blue cloak, later described as seeming like clouds covering his radiance. Any ideas on the reason for that colour discrepancy?

Gandalf's wearing of this blue cloak reminds me of his wearing of "dirty grey rags" as Gimli put it, in Fangorn.

As Gandalf the White, even after the successful completion of his task, does he perhaps still need to cloak his power before the people of Middle-earth? If so, is the fine blue cloak an indication that his task is done, a reward so to speak. No longer does he need to go about dressed in rags...

A funny thing about this cloak is that the description of it reminds me of the cloak that Finduilas wore, and that Faramir gave Eowyn.

Gandalf's Cloak:

And Gandalf, too, was now riding on his tall grey horse, all clad in white with a great mantle of blue and silver overl all, and the long sword Glamdring at his side.

Eowyn's Cloak:

They were clad in warm raiment and heavy cloaks , and over all the Lady Eowyn wore a great blue mantle of the colour of deep summer-night, and it was set with silver stars about hem and throat.

Although not directly implied in these two descriptive passages, I've always imagined these two cloaks as fairly similar...