Deer
Deer (S. Aras[1]) were graceful creatures found throughout Middle-earth. Deer were loved by the Vala Nessa, and were said to follow her as she travelled through wild lands.[2]
In the First Age the Teiglin River flowed through a gorge west of the forest of Brethil.[3] At the narrowest part of the gorge was Cabed-en-Aras, "The Deer's Leap", where once a deer leaped across the river to escape a huntsman of Haleth.[4]
In T.A. 2941[5] Thorin and Company were in the process of crossing the Enchanted River when a dark-coloured deer bowled into the Dwarves. Although Thorin shot the hart with an arrow as it leaped there was no recovering the venison for the boat they were using floated away. Worse, the commotion caused Bombur to fall into the water, which caused him to fall asleep for days after he was rescued. Soon after, a white deer and her snowy fawns appeared on the path. The dwarves shot arrows at them but none hit and the deer vanished.[6]
In Sindarin, the adjective ross was often used to describe the copper colour of red deer.[7]
Portrayal in adaptations[edit | edit source]
2001: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring:
- In the Extended Edition of the film, while the hobbits camp at the edge of the Midgewater Marshes, Aragorn leaves them for a while and returns at night, carrying a small deer he had hunted and caught. The dead deer used for filming the scene was bought from a New Zealand farm raising fallow deer as livestock for meat.
2007: The Lord of the Rings Online:
- Deer are found in many places of Middle-earth. They are typically not aggressive, but some will fight if the player threatens them. Weaker deer will run away when attacked.
See also[edit | edit source]
References
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Children of Húrin, "List of Names", Cabed-en-Aras, p. 298
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Silmarillion, "Valaquenta: Of the Valar"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Silmarillion, "Map of Beleriand and the Lands to the North"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Children of Húrin, "The Coming of Glaurung", p. 230
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix B, "The Third Age"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit, "Flies and Spiders"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, "Etymological Notes on the Ósanwe-kenta" (edited by Carl F. Hostetter), in Vinyar Tengwar, Number 41, July 2000, p. 10
