“All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost.

From the ashes a fire shall be woken,
A light from the shadows shall spring;
Renewed shall be blade that was broken,
The crownless again shall be king.”

Flame of the West, the title given to the shards of Narsil reforged: Andúril.

I chose to pair the Shards of Narsil with peonies, a flower commonly referred to as a Pentecost Rose because it blooms right around Pentecost, a feast associated with Fire and one of Hope. This was done as a foreshadowing to their reforging, as the leaves and blooms sprout up amongst the pieces of the broken sword.

The peonies wrap around the shards as a reminder of the way that the line of Isildur was quietly fostered and preserved in Imladris; peony roots remain hidden beneath the earth during winter, only to return in the earliest days of summer (or latest days of spring). Deep roots are not reached by the frost.

The vibrance of the florals against the dull grey of the sword speak to the fact that it has not yet been brought back to ‘life’ in the fires of the forge. From the ashes a fire shall be woken.

Someday, this flame will be rekindled to smite against the terror of the dark — but for now, the world awaits in expectant hope. And even as it dwindles, it does not die. Renewed shall be blade that was broken.

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