Middle-earth

Artifact

The Phial of Galadriel

Also known as The Star-glass, The Light of Earendil

A small crystal phial that holds the light of Earendil star, drawn from Galadriel mirror. In the darkest places of Mordor it becomes a light of hope and a defense against Shelob.

Tolkien’s textsSupported by the narratives published in Tolkien’s lifetime.
Type
Object
Forged by
Galadriel, filled with the light of Earendil star as caught in her mirror
The Phial of Galadriel

Description

The phial is a plain-seeming crystal flask, filled with water in which Galadriel has captured the light of the star of Earendil, itself the light of a Silmaril. Given to Frodo when the Fellowship leaves Lothlorien, it is the finest gift in the story precisely because it answers despair rather than force. It shines when its holder has hope and courage; it can drive back the darkness of Mordor and the horror of Shelob. Its power is the memory of light rather than light as a weapon, and it is bound up with the fate of the Elven ring that keeps Lothlorien alive.

Powers

  • Gives a bright light in the darkest places, especially in Mordor.
  • Strengthens the courage and hope of whoever holds it.
  • Repels the will and terror of enemies such as Shelob and the will of Sauron in his own land.

Limitations

  • Its light depends on the hope of its bearer; it can seem to fail when courage nearly does.
  • Its power is tied to the Elven realm and its ring; once the One is destroyed that order fades.

Line of owners

  1. 1

    Galadriel

    Third Age

    Made and filled in Lothlorien and given to Frodo as the Fellowship departs.

  2. 2

    Frodo Baggins

    T.A. 3019

    Carried to Mordor and used against Shelob in the pass of Cirith Ungol.

  3. 3

    Samwise Gamgee

    T.A. 3019 onward

    Bears it when Frodo is taken, and uses it to resist the Uruk-hai in the tower.

Symbolism

Symbolism

Hope as a memory of light carried into darkness. It is the gentlest answer the story offers to the Ring, and a reminder that small things and small hands can matter most.

Fate

Sam carries the phial home to the Shire; its final keeping is not narrated. Its light belongs to an order that passes with the end of the Third Age.

Characters

In the histories

Sources

  • The Lord of the Rings · 1954–55

    Three volumes: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, The Return of the King.

  • The Silmarillion · 1977

    Posthumously edited. Contains the Ainulindalë, Valaquenta, Quenta Silmarillion, Akallabêth and Of the Rings of Power.

  • Unfinished Tales · 1980

    Expanded and alternative accounts of the First, Second and Third Ages.

  • The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien · 1981

    Authorial commentary useful for interpretation, but not always narrative canon.

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