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This article refers to the Elf of Gondolin. For other namesakes, see Ecthelion (disambiguation).

Ecthelion, or Ecthelion of the Fountain, was a mighty lord of Gondolin during the First Age of Middle-earth, and one of its greatest heroes.

Biography

Aredhel's Escort

Two hundred years after Gondolin was wrought, Ecthelion, Glorfindel and Egalmoth, along with the White Lady of the Ñoldor left the Hidden City due to Aredhel's yearning for the freedom she once had in Valinor. Their orders were to lead her towards Hithlum, where she would meet her elder brother Fingon. When coming upon the Ford of Brithiach, Aredhel ordered them to turn south, for she desired to see the Sons of Fëanor. Thus, Ecthelion and his companions sought admittance to Doriath, but the wardens refused them entrance inside the Girdle of Melian. Having no other choice, they took the dangerous road between the haunted valleys of Ered Gorgoroth. Near Nan Dungortheb, the Valley of Dreadful Death, the riders were caught in a mesh of shadows and they were lost from Aredhel. In vain, they sought her afterwards, but the fell offspring of Ungoliant that dwelt in that place pursued them. Barely escaping alive, the three lords returned to Gondolin without the princess, where they were received in sorrow.[1]

A Lord of Gondolin

In the year, FA 473 Ecthelion fought alongside Turgon in the battle Nirnaeth Arnoediad, leading a wing of Gondolin's forces. Upon the defeat of the Ñoldor, he defended a flank as Turgon retreated.[2]

Twenty-three years after Nirnaeth Arnoediad, Tuor and Voronwë of Gondolin traveled towards the Hidden City. After being led by Elemmakil through the Seven Gates, Ecthelion appeared before them as Warden of the Great Gate.

"And high and noble as was Elemmakil, greater and more lordly was Ecthelion, Lord of the Fountains, at that time Warden of the Great Gate. All in silver was he clad, and upon his shining helm there was set a spike of steel pointed with a diamond; and as his esquire took his shield it shimmered as if it were bedewed with drops of rain, that were indeed a thousand studs of crystal."
Unfinished Tales, Of Tuor and his Coming to Gondolin

Ecthelion initially denied passage for Tuor but when Tuor made a reference towards Ulmo, the Lord of the Waters, Ecthelion eventually allowed him entry.

Jenny Dolfen - Glorfindel and Ecthelion

Ecthelion and Glorfindel, by Jenny Dolfen

He was the leader of the House of the Fountain, one of the Twelve Houses of the Gondolindrim. His people were fond of diamonds and the silver of their arrays was most beautiful to the sight. In FA 510 during the Fall of Gondolin, Ecthelion led his house into battle accompanied by the music of their flutes and great were the damages caused to the enemy by their long, bright swords.[3]

Warcry of the Eldar

In the battle over Gondolin, Ecthelion and his forces made their entrance from the South part of the city, after previously being held in reserve. So terrible was his voice when commanding the drawing of the swords and the killings, which followed, that his name became a terror among the enemy and a Warcry to the Eldar. Valiantly fighting side by side with Tuor and his House of the Wing, they drove away the orcs until almost the Gate was regained. As Dragons reinforced Morgoth's army, Ecthelion killed three Balrogs and his sword did "hurt to their fire". Outnumbered, they had to retreat. When doing so, Ecthelion's left arm was wounded and his shield fell to earth. Tuor carried him away as they joined the remaining leaders in the Square of the King.

In that place, the great Fountain of the King stood and Ecthelion regained his strength by drinking from it. As seven dragons lead the enemy's forces towards the Square, the remaining army of Gondolin began retreat. All but Ecthelion, who remained near the fountain in a stand, which was remembered as the most valiant "in all the songs or in any tale". It was there that he faced Gothmog, Lord of Balrogs.[3]

Slayer of Gothmog

LOTR Ecthelion and Gothmog

Ecthelion preparing to face Gothmog during the Fall of Gondolin, by Cloister

Tuor tried to stand in the way of Gothmog, but he was thrown aside. Then Ecthelion, fairest of the Ñoldor, but whose face now had the pallor of grey steel, dueled him. Losing his sword due to a wound received he was unable to protect himself. Just as Gothmog was about to deliver the finishing blow, Ecthelion jumped and wrapped his legs around the demon, driving the spike of his helmet into Gothmog's body. This caused Gothmog to lose his balance, and he, along with Ecthelion, fell into the Fountain of the King. Gothmog's fire was thus quenched, but Ecthelion also drowned with him and found his death in cool waters, whose lord he was.

Later, a young Eärendil asked about him, saying that he wished Ecthelion were there, "to play to me on his flute, or make me willow whistles! Perchance has he gone on ahead?" After he was informed of Ecthelion's death, he "wept bitterly" and said that he cared no more to see the streets of Gondolin.[3]

Weapons

Although it was never confirmed, it is largely believed that Ecthelion is the original owner of Orcrist. If so, it is interesting due to the fact that Orcrist and its mate Glamdring killed the two most famous Balrogs of all time - Glamdring later killing Durin's Bane, and Orcrist Gothmog.

Etymology

There are three different sources that offer a translation of Ecthelion and they all differ substantially. In The Book of Lost Tales 2 Appendix, it is said that the name derives from the Quenya ehtelë ("issue of water, spring"), a reference to his title as Lord for the House of the Fountain.

In the etymologie of The Lost Road and Other Writings, his name is composed from ehtë, ("spear") and thela, ("point") (of spear). Put together they would translate as "Spear-point" or "Spear-head".

In The War of the Jewels, which seems to be the last matter J.R.R. Tolkien wrote on it, the name is derived from aeg, ("sharp") and thel, ("intent, resolve"). This would translate "one of sharp resolve".

Other versions of the legendarium

Ecthelion's Last Stand

Ecthelion against Gothmog, by Jenny Dolfen at goldseven.de

Perhaps the earliest J.R.R. Tolkien writing, The Fall of Gondolin was written during a leave of absence from the World War I, in the year 1916. It is in that story, published posthumously by Christopher Tolkien in the volume The Book of Lost Tales 2 that Ecthelion first appears. Thus, he is one of the first characters Tolkien ever created.

However, from a chronological point of view, the first account of his presence is the chapter Of Maeglin from The Silmarillion. The events described here took place more than one hundred and fifty years before those of Gondolin's fall. Along with Glorfindel of Gondolin and Egalmoth, he was assigned by Turgon as Aredhel's escort on her ill-fated journey. Though no name is mentioned, only that "Turgon appointed three lords of his household", an explanatory note in the volume The War of the Jewels, chapter called Maeglin, sheds light on the escorts' identities.[4]

Translations around the World

Foreign Language Translated name
Afrikaans Ecthelion van die Fontein
Albanian Ecthelion nga Burimi
Amharic ዐችትሀሊኦን ኦፍ ትሀ ፎኡንታኢን
Arabic ىچتهيليون وف تهي فوونتاين ?
Basque Iturriaren Ecthelion
Belarusian Cyrillic Эктелион оф тhе фантана
Bosnian Ecthelion Fontane
Catalan Ecthelion de la font
Cebuano Ecthelion sa Tuburan
Chinese 涌泉家族的艾克希里昂
Corsican Ecthelion di la Fontana
Croatian Ecthelion Fontane
Czech Ecthelion Kašny
Danish Ecthelion af Springvand
Dutch Ecthelion van de Fontein
Esperanto Ecthelion de la Fonto
Estonian Ecthelioni Purskkaevu ?
Filipino Ecthelion ng Paunten
Finnish Ecthelion Suihkulähde
French Ecthelion de la Source
Georgian ეჩთჰელიონ ოf თჰე შადრევანი ?
German Ecthelion des Brunnens
Greek Εκθηλίων οφ θε Φουντάιν ?
Hausa Ecthelion na Fawuntin
Hawaiian Ecthelion o ke Kumuwai
Hindi कठेलिओन ऑफ़ थे फाउंटेन
Hmong Ecthelion ntawm Tug ciav
Hungarian Ecthelion a Szökőkút
Icelandic Ecthelion af Gosbrunnur
Indonesian Ecthelion air mancur
Italian Ecthelion della Fonte
Japanese 泉のエクセリオン
Kazakh Cyrillic Бұрқақ бірге Эктелионом
Kurdish ه‌چتهه‌لیۆن ۆف تهه‌ فۆونتاین (Arabic script) Ecthelion ji Kaniya (Latin)
Latvian Ecthelion no Strūklakas
Lithuanian Ecthelion Fontanas
Luxembourgish Ecthelion vun de Sprangbuer
Maori Ecthelion o te Puna
Malay Ecthelion mata air
Malayalam നീരുറവ നിസഹായനാണ്
Maltese Ecthelion tal-funtana
Nepalese एच्थेलिओन को यो छहरा
Norwegian Ecthelion av Fontenen
Polish Ecthelion Fontanny
Portuguese Ecthelion da Fonte
Romanian Ecthelion de Fântâna
Russian Эктелион из в фонтана
Serbian Ецтхелион оф тхе Фоунтаин (Cyrillic) Ehtelionov Fontane (Latin)
Slovak Ecthelionu Fontány
Slovenian Ecthelion od Vodnjaka
Spanish Ecthelion de la Fuente
Swahili Ecthelion ya Chemchemi
Swedish Ecthelion av Fontänen
Tajik Cyrillic Ечтҳелион аз Фонтан
Tamil எகிப்தேளின் ஓபி தி போவுண்டைன்
Telugu ఏసీతెలియన్ అఫ్ ది ఫౌంటెన్
Turkish Çeşme Ecthelion'un
Ukrainian Cyrillic Ектеліон оф тге фонтану
Urdu چشمہ کے اکٹہیلیون ?
Yiddish עקטהעליאָן פון די פאָנטאַן
Yucatec Maya Ecthelion le Fuente

Gallery

Echthelion govar
Echthelion of the Fountain
Ectheliongothmog
Echthelion faces Gothmog
Lords of gondolin by kazuki mendou-d6r4vo6
Ecthelion of the Fountain alongside King Turgon and the other Lords of Gondolin, by Kazuki Mendou

References

  1. The Silmarillion, Quenta Silmarillion, Chapter XVI: "Of Maeglin"
  2. The Silmarillion, Quenta Silmarillion, Chapter XX: "Of the Fifth Battle: Nirnaeth Arnoediad"
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 The History of Middle-earth, Vol. 2: The Book of Lost Tales Part Two, III: "The Fall of Gondolin" Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "History" defined multiple times with different content Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "History" defined multiple times with different content
  4. The History of Middle-earth, Vol. 11: The War of the Jewels, Part Three: The Wanderings of Húrin and Other Writings..., III. Maeglin
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