On Balrogs and Dragons in The Fall of Gondolin see pp. 212–13.

(iv) Noldorin in the Land of Willows

‘Did not even after the days of Tuor Noldorin and his Eldar come there seeking for Dor Lуmin and the hidden river and the caverns of the Gnomes’ imprisonment; yet thus nigh to their quest’s end were like to abandon it? Indeed sleeping and dancing here…they were whelmed by the goblins sped by Melko from the Hills of Iron and Noldorin made bare escape thence’ (p. 154). This was the Battle of Tasarinan, mentioned in the Tale of Turambar (pp. 70, 140), at the time of the great expedition of the Elves from Kфr. Cf. Lindo’s remark in The Cottage of Lost Play (I.16) that his father Valwл ‘went with Noldorin to find the Gnomes’.

Noldorin (Salmar, companion of Ulmo) is also said in the tale to have fought beside Tulkas at the Pools of Twilight against Melko himself, though his name was struck out (p. 195 and note 38); this was after the Battle of Tasarinan. On these battles see pp. 278ff.

(v) The stature of Elves and Men

The passage concerning Tuor’s stature on p. 159, before it was rewritten (see note 18), can only mean that while Tuor was not himself unusually tall for a Man he was nonetheless taller than the Elves of Gondolin, and thus agrees with statements made in the Tale of Turambar (see p. 142). As emended, however, the meaning is rather that Men and Elves were not greatly distinct in stature.

(vi) Isfin and Eцl

The earliest version of this tale is found in the little Lost Tales notebook (see I. 171), as follows:

Isfin and Eцl

Isfin daughter of Fingolma loved from afar by Eцl (Arval) of the Mole-kin of the Gnomes. He is strong and in favour with Fingolma and with the Sons of Fлanor (to whom he is akin) because he is a leader of the Miners and searches after hidden jewels, but he is illfavoured and Isfin loathes him.

(Fingolma as a name for Finwл Nуlemл appears in outlines for Gilfanon’s Tale, I.238–9.) We have here an illfavoured miner named Eцl ‘of the Mole’ who loves Isfin but is rejected by her with loathing; and this is obviously closely parallel to the illfavoured miner Meglin with the sign of the sable mole seeking the hand of idril, who rejects him, in The Fall of Gondolin. It is difficult to know how to interpret this. The simplest explanation is that the story adumbrated in the little notebook is actually earlier than that in The Fall of Gondolin; that Meglin did not yet exist; and that subsequently the image of the ‘ugly miner—unsuccessful suitor’ became that of the son, the object of desire becoming Idril (niece of Isfin), while a new story was developed for the father, Eцl the dark Elf of the forest who ensnared Isfin. But it is by no means clear where Eцl the miner was when he ‘loved from afar’ Isfin daughter of Fingolma. There seems to be no reason to think that he was associated with Gondolin; more probably the idea of the miner bearing the sign of the Mole entered Gondolin with Meglin.

IV THE NAUGLAFRING

We come now to the last of the original Lost Tales to be given consecutive narrative form. This is contained in a separate notebook, and it bears the title The Nauglafring: The Necklace of the Dwarves.

The beginning of this tale is somewhat puzzling. Before the telling of The Fall of Gondolin Lindo told Littleheart that ‘it is the desire of all that you tell us the tales of Tuor and of Eдrendel as soon as may be’ (p. 144), and Littleheart replied: ‘It is a mighty tale, and seven times shall folk fare to the Tale-fire ere it be rightly told; and so twined is it with those stories of the Nauglafring and of the Elf-march that I would fain have aid in that telling of Ailios here…’ Thus Littleheart’s surrender of the chair of the tale-teller to Ailios at the beginning of the present text, so that Ailios should tell of the Nauglafring, fits the general context well; but we should not expect the new tale to be introduced with the words ‘But after a while silence fell’, since The Fall of Gondolin ends ‘And no one in all the Room of Logs spake or moved for a great while.’ In any case, after the very long Fall of Gondolin the next tale would surely have waited till the following evening.

This tale is once again a manuscript in ink over a wholly erased original in pencil, but only so far as the words ‘sate his greed’ on page 230. From this point to the end there is only a primary manuscript in pencil in the first stage of composition, written in haste—in places hurled on to the page, with a good many words not certainly decipherable; and a part of this was extensively rewritten while the tale was still in progress (see note 13).

The Nauglafring

The Necklace of the Dwarves

But after a while silence fell, and folk murmured ‘Eдrendel’, but others said ‘Nay—what of the Nauglafring, the Necklace of the Dwarves.’ Therefore said Ilfiniol, leaving the chair of the tale-teller: ‘Yea, better would the tale be told if Ailios would relate the matters concerning that necklace,’ and Ailios being nowise unwilling thus began, looking upon the company.

‘Remember ye all how Ъrin the Steadfast cast the gold of Glorund before the feet of Tinwelint, and after would not touch it again, but went in sorrow back to Hisilуmл, and there died?’ And all said that that tale was still fresh in their hearts.

‘Behold then,’ said Ailios, ‘in great grief gazed the king upon Ъrin as he left the hall, and he was weary for the evil of Melko that thus deceived all hearts; yet tells the tale that so potent were the spells that Mоm the fatherless had woven about that hoard that, even as it lay upon the floor of the king’s halls shining strangely in the light of the torches that burnt there, already were all who looked upon it touched by its subtle evil.

Now therefore did those of Ъrin’s band murmur, and one said to the king: “Lo, lord, our captain Ъrin, an old man and mad, has departed, but we have no mind to forego our gain.”

Then said Tinwelint, for neither was he untouched by the golden spell: “Nay then, know ye not that this gold belongs to the kindred of the Elves in common, for the Rodothlim who won it from the earth long time ago are no more, and no one has especial claim¹ to so much as a handful save only Ъrin by reason of his son Tъrin, who slew the Worm, the robber of the Elves; yet Tъrin is dead and Ъrin will have none of it; and Tъrin was my man.”

At those words the outlaws fell into great wrath, until the king said: “Get ye now gone, and seek not O foolish ones to quarrel with the Elves of the forest, lest death or the dread enchantments of Valinor find you in the woods. Neither revile ye the name of Tinwelint their king, for I will reward you richly enough for your travail and the bringing of the gold. Let each one now approach and take what he may grasp with either hand, and then depart in peace.”

Now were the Elves of the wood in turn displeased, who long had stood nigh gazing on the gold; but the wild folk did as they were bid, and yet more, for some went into the hoard twice and thrice, and angry cries were raised in that hall. Then would the woodland Elves hinder them of their thieving, and a great dissension arose, so that though the king would stay them none heeded him. Then did those outlaws being fierce and fearless folk draw swords and deal blows about them, so that soon there was a great fight even upon the steps of the high-seat of the king. Doughty were those outlaws and great wielders of sword and axe from their warfare with Orcs,² so that many were slain ere the king, seeing that peace and pardon might no longer be, summoned a host of his warriors, and those outlaws being wildered with the stronger magics of the king³ and confused in the dark ways of the halls of Tinwelint were all slain fighting bitterly; but the king’s hall ran with gore, and the gold that lay before his throne, scattered and spurned by trampling feet, was drenched with blood. Thus did the curse of Mоm the Dwarf begin its course; and yet another sorrow sown by the Noldoli of old in Valinor was come to fruit.⁴