Marginalia

sssMost importantly, Tolkien shares with traditional craftsmen an understanding that materials have moral weight. Gold, silver, steel, and stone are not neutral; they endure, remember, and outlast their makers. Like historical metalr, Tolkien treats making as an ethical act, one that binds the maker to the made, for good or ill. In this sense, his jewel lore is not fantasy at all but a deeply traditional meditation on what it means to shape the world by hand.hand.

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In The Silmarillion and The Lord of the Rings, J. R. R. Tolkien treats jewelry not as ornament but as concentrated craft objects where the skill, intention, and moral consequence are inseparably fused. Rings, gems, and finely wrought heirlooms carry the imprint of their makers long after those makers are gone. In Tolkien’s world, to make something beautiful is a profound act, but to bind power, identity, or will into an object is always fraught with danger. Jewelry becomes the most intimate expression of this tension between artistry and control.

Fëanor and the Peril of the Perfect Work

No figure better embodies Tolkien’s fascination with making than Fëanor, greatest of the Noldorin Elves and creator of the Silmarils in the Undying Lands of Valinor. In these three crystals of his own devising, Fëanor captured the unsullied light of the Two Trees of Valinor. The Silmarils were objects of unparalleled radiance and holiness, the pinnacle of Elven art, and yet their beauty proved catastrophic. When Morgoth (Melkor) stole the Silmarils and slew Fëanor’s father, Finwë, escaping from Valinor to Middle-earth, Fëanor swore an unbreakable oath to reclaim them. In binding his sons to this vow, he set in motion centuries of kinslaying, exile, and unending war in Middle-earth.

As the struggle unfolded across the ages, one Silmaril became bound to the Nauglamír, a magnificent necklace originally forged by the Dwarves for Finrod Felagund. The necklace was later refashioned to hold the Silmaril recovered by Beren and Lúthien from Morgoth’s crown. When Thingol of Doriath quarreled with the Dwarves over payment for the work, the dispute escalated into violence, leading to Thingol’s death and the sack of Doriath. The fate of the Nauglamír thus illustrates how even the noblest creations can incite greed and destruction when they become objects of covetous desire.

The final destiny of the Silmarils frames the larger arc of The Silmarillion itself. One is borne into the heavens by Eärendil and set among the stars; one is cast into the sea; and one is buried in the earth. Their dispersal underscores the impossibility of reclaiming lost perfection and the enduring consequences of possessive love. Fëanor is not merely a gifted artisan but the greatest craftsman the Elves ever produced, a figure whose skill borders on the transcendent. The Silmarils are not precious because they are rare or costly, but because they preserve something irrecoverable: the unmarred light of the Two Trees of Valinor. In this sense, they resemble sacred relics or holy vessels rather than jewels in the ordinary sense.

Yet Tolkien is careful to show that technical mastery alone does not sanctify a work. Fëanor’s tragedy lies not in the making of the Silmarils, but in his inability to relinquish them. His possessiveness transforms a supreme act of sub-creation into a source of violence and loss. Though the jewels outlive their maker, they carry his will forward like a fault line through history. Tolkien thus introduces a central idea that echoes throughout his legendarium: the more perfectly a work embodies its maker, the more dangerous it becomes when that maker cannot let go.

The Rings of Power and the Craft of Influence

In the Second Age, the three elven Rings of Power emerge as the most infamous jewelry in the mythology. Sauron, disguised as Annatar, taught the Elves of Eregion to forge rings that could amplify power and preserve beauty. Celebrimbor, grandson of Fëanor, created the Three Elven Rings: Narya (the Ring of Fire), Nenya (the Ring of Water), and Vilya (the Ring of Air), which were free from Sauron's direct touch. These rings preserved realms like Rivendell and Lothlórien but were still linked to the greater scheme. Their making reflects an advanced metallurgical imagination: rings conceived as closed circuits, binding force inward that are elegant in form, yet potent in function.

Sauron, to control all of the rings forged by Celebrimbor, forged the One Ring in secret to rule them all, pouring his essence into it. This plain golden band, inscribed with Black Speech visible only in fire, became the ultimate instrument of domination. It enslaved the wearers of the Nine Rings (the Nazgûl), corrupted the Dwarven rings' bearers through greed, and tempted all who touched it. Those that possessed the three Elven Rings sensed Sauron's betrayal and removed their rings and hid them. In The Lord of the Rings, the One Ring drives the central quest, its power to dominate wills underscoring Tolkien's warning against the lust for control. 

Sauron’s role in their creation reveals Tolkien’s darker view of craft divorced from humility. The One Ring is not merely a masterwork; it is a device of domination. Sauron pours his own essence into the metal, collapsing the boundary between maker and object. Unlike the Silmarils, which contain a holy light that was not of Fëanor’s making, the One Ring contains only Sauron’s will and hence cannot exist without corrupting others.  

The One Ring stands in deliberate contrast to the work of the Elven-smiths. Where the Three were instruments of preservation, made to sustain what already existed, the One Ring was conceived as a tool of domination. Forged by Sauron alone in the fires of the volcano Orodruin, it was not merely crafted by its maker but from him; Sauron poured a substantial portion of his own will and power into the metal itself. In doing so, he collapsed the boundary between craftsman and object, creating a ring that functioned less as an artifact than as an extension of his intent.

From a maker’s perspective, this distinction is crucial. The Elven Rings enhance and support the natural order, operating subtly and indirectly, while the One Ring overrides it. Its power is not stabilizing but coercive, bending other wills rather than strengthening their own. Even its form reflects this purpose: plain, unadorned, and deceptively simple, it disguises absolute control beneath minimal surface expression. The One Ring is thus the logical endpoint of craft unmoored from restraint, where technical mastery is harnessed entirely to possession and control, with no allowance for loss, change, or independence.

The Three Elven Rings stand as a counterexample and are used quietly by the elflords that possess them, almost invisibly, to heal, preserve, and inspire rather than command. The eventual fading of the Three after the destruction of the One Ring underscores another Tolkienian truth: even the finest works must pass away. True craftsmanship accepts impermanence; domination refuses it.

Heirlooms, Lineage, and Honest Making

Beyond the great jewels and rings, Tolkien fills Middle-earth with fine jewelry that carries symbolic weight. The Ring of Barahir, a silver ring with serpents and a green gem, was given by Finrod Felagund to Barahir for saving his life. It passed through generations to Beren, then to Aragorn, serving as a token of alliance between Elves and Men and a sign of rightful kingship.

The Elfstone (Elessar), a green jewel in an eagle-shaped brooch, was given by Galadriel to Aragorn, fulfilling prophecy and symbolizing renewal and healing. Elven brooches given to the Fellowship offered subtle protection and connection to nature. All of these, even Frodo’s mithril coat, are examples of honest making aligned with service and stewardship. The mithril coat is a triumph of material knowledge: light, flexible, and stronger than steel, yet it is given freely and used to protect life, not dominate it. These objects age well because their purpose is just. These artifacts are not cursed and not jealous of their bearers.

Tolkien, Craft, and the Maker’s Responsibility

Tolkien’s deepest concern is not power itself, but the moral responsibility of the maker. Jewelry, because it is small, intimate, and enduring, becomes the ideal medium through which to explore this idea. A ring is worn on the body; a jewel rests near the heart. These objects cross the boundary between the external world and the inner life. In Tolkien’s hands, they amplify intention, good or ill.

The lesson is subtle but consistent: craftsmanship is noble when it serves the world and destructive when it seeks to replace it. The problem is never skill, but attachment; never beauty, but ownership without restraint.

Tolkien and Real-World Traditions of Metal and Gem Craft

Tolkien’s imagined jewels draw deeply from real historical metalwork and gem traditions. The Silmarils echo medieval reliquaries and regalia, objects believed to contain sacred presence rather than mere value. The Rings of Power reflect ancient ideas of rings as symbols of oath, authority, and cosmic order, from Roman signet rings to Norse arm rings. Dwarven craft evokes early Germanic and Scandinavian metalwork, prized for durability, precision, and lineage rather than ornament alone.

Most importantly, Tolkien shares with traditional craftsmen an understanding that materials have moral weight. Gold, silver, steel, and stone are not neutral; they endure, remember, and outlast their makers. Like historical metalworkers, Tolkien treats making as an ethical act, one that binds the maker to the made, for good or ill. In this sense, his jewel lore is not fantasy at all but a deeply traditional meditation on what it means to shape the world by hand.