Rings of Power S1 - Lindon Elves

In 2019 Wētā Workshop began work on Amazon’s The Lord of The Rings: The Rings of Power. For many in the Workshop, this was a welcome return to Middle-earth and it was a pleasure to design and manufacture the weapons for each race in the show under the guidance of Production Designer Ramsey Avery and Weapons Master Joe Dunckley.

There are two main groups of elves represented in the show. The high Elves of Lindon and Eregion are presented as refined and noble while the Silvan Elves of the Southlands are less-refined and more rustic.

The weapons of the high elves are resplendent in silver and gold and reference the elegant organic forms of La Tène artefacts. By contrast, the Silvan Elves in the show honoured ageing and wear in their weapons, considering the blemishes of time to increase the beauty of an item. In the creation of their blades the Silvan Elves practised a lost art, enabling them to organically fuse metal and wood to create a very strong weapon, seamlessly unified from blade tip to pommel.