Pallando (Quenya; IPA: [palˈlando]), also known as Pallando the Blue and Rómestámo (Quenya; [ˌroːmesˈtaːmo]), was one of the five Istari or Wizards that were sent to Middle-earth to aid the Free Peoples in their struggle against Sauron.
Biography
Before they came to Middle-earth, Pallando and Alatar were both Maiar spirits who served the Vala Oromë. Pallando was taken to Middle-earth at the bidding of Alatar, another Istar who took him as a friend.
Pallando and Alatar (known as the Blue Wizards for their sea-blue robes) traveled to the east of Middle-earth with Curumo (Saruman the White) to aid some men and subdue others, primarily the Easterlings and Southrons who worshiped Sauron, and whose numbers were steadily increasing. Saruman later returned to the West, but Pallando along with Alatar stayed behind.
Other than this, not much is positively known about Pallando or Alatar, but it is thought that Pallando most likely failed his mission eventually. However, in Tolkien's later years he provided an alternate name for the wizard, Rómestámo, or "Helper of the East". Here it is thought that rather than fail his mission altogether, Pallando perhaps had the opposite fate, and he and Alatar may have in fact played some crucial role in the War of the Ring and in the victory of the Army of the West, unnoticed but significant.[1]
Physical Appearance
When Pallando came to Middle-earth, he was clothed in flesh and had the appearance of a wizened old man, though he did not look as old as Gandalf. He, along with Alatar, was dressed in robes of sea-blue, which is why they both came to be known as "the Blue Wizards" or Ithryn Luin.[1] Pallando had a grey beard which was not as long as either Gandalf's or Saruman's. He carried a staff, as did the other Istari, which he could use to channel his magical powers.
Portrayal in Adaptations
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
When talking to Bilbo, Gandalf mentions the two Blue Wizards in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. When Bilbo asks how many Wizards there are, Gandalf states that there is himself, Saruman, the two Blue Wizards (whose names he has "quite forgotten"), and Radagast. (The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey)
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Unfinished Tales, Part Four: II: "The Istari"
