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The Goose-Farms of Mordor
Feb. 6th, 2019 02:28 pmThis train of thought is brought to you by the black swans Aragorn spots flying across Anduin, and the black-feathered orc arrows mentioned early in The Two Towers.
Thought one: what are black swans doing in the service of Sauron*? Are they a sign that the Numenoreans discovered the Middle Earth equivalent of Australia and brought back ornamental birds? Is Aragorn's ornithology or eyesight lacking here, or is he indeed being metaphorical and they are not black swans at all, he is remarking on an impossibility? Or just as the Company are mistaken about the eagle-that-wasn't-evil, are the swans not evil at all, but fleeing the bondage of Sauron?
Thought two: if Mordor-Orcs have black-feathered arrows, where are they getting the feathers from? Are they dyed? It's possible. Unlike the black horses, stolen from Rohan, it is probably easier to dye a vat of feathers than a horse, and it hardly seems beyond Sauron's technological powers. We know that the Nazgul's cloaks remain a sinister black despite a journey to Eriador that has left Boromir's rich clothing travel-stained.** But you still need to acquire the feathers.
According to the internet (and the people who wrote the books that get referenced on the internet), goose feathers were used for arrows in Medieval Europe, and in staggering numbers:
That's a lot of goose feathers.
So where is Sauron getting his feathers from? There is no mention of terrible depredations of poultry sheds throughout Wilderland or Ithilien. Is he taking them as tribute from the lands further east? And what of the orcs of the Misty Mountains? Is there a thriving trade (through intermediaries, perhaps) between Moria and the little-known poultry sheds of the Sea of Rhún? And are they goose feathers at all, since other birds can be used, and Sauron is cutting out the dye manufacturers by using black swans?
Which brings me to the Sea of Núrnen and its surrounding slave-tilled fields that feed the armies of Mordor. We're told that it's a "bitter inland sea", so possibly its tributaries rather than it are used for irrigation. In which case, why not use the lake for other things? In short I vote for giant goose (or possibly swan) farms. The resultant guano-based fertiliser can explain the famous stench of the Mordor air.
*And has anyone ever written the Dr Doolittle crossover? What with bird spies who must be given instructions and have their reports understood, and their impressive achievements in training wolves as riding animals, I feel that some at least of the servants of Sauron might have a new Fourth Age career in the entertainment and industrial espionage industries.
**Speaking of which, if Boromir got off on the wrong foot with the Council of Elrond at times, maybe it would have helped if, having turned up at dawn with news of a prophecy, they had put it off for 24 hours to allow him time for a good night's rest and a change of clothes. Especially since they spend the next two months hanging around there.
Thought one: what are black swans doing in the service of Sauron*? Are they a sign that the Numenoreans discovered the Middle Earth equivalent of Australia and brought back ornamental birds? Is Aragorn's ornithology or eyesight lacking here, or is he indeed being metaphorical and they are not black swans at all, he is remarking on an impossibility? Or just as the Company are mistaken about the eagle-that-wasn't-evil, are the swans not evil at all, but fleeing the bondage of Sauron?
Thought two: if Mordor-Orcs have black-feathered arrows, where are they getting the feathers from? Are they dyed? It's possible. Unlike the black horses, stolen from Rohan, it is probably easier to dye a vat of feathers than a horse, and it hardly seems beyond Sauron's technological powers. We know that the Nazgul's cloaks remain a sinister black despite a journey to Eriador that has left Boromir's rich clothing travel-stained.** But you still need to acquire the feathers.
According to the internet (and the people who wrote the books that get referenced on the internet), goose feathers were used for arrows in Medieval Europe, and in staggering numbers:
Arrows were fletched with goose feathers, which were collected from the peasantry as a form of tax. In 1418-9 Henry V ordered his sheriffs (the royal officials in each county) to collect a total of 1.19 million goose feathers over the course of 10 months, to be delivered to the Tower of London by Michaelmas (on Sept. 29). A similar though smaller order, two years earlier, specified that six feathers should be taken from each goose. (Source.)
That's a lot of goose feathers.
So where is Sauron getting his feathers from? There is no mention of terrible depredations of poultry sheds throughout Wilderland or Ithilien. Is he taking them as tribute from the lands further east? And what of the orcs of the Misty Mountains? Is there a thriving trade (through intermediaries, perhaps) between Moria and the little-known poultry sheds of the Sea of Rhún? And are they goose feathers at all, since other birds can be used, and Sauron is cutting out the dye manufacturers by using black swans?
Which brings me to the Sea of Núrnen and its surrounding slave-tilled fields that feed the armies of Mordor. We're told that it's a "bitter inland sea", so possibly its tributaries rather than it are used for irrigation. In which case, why not use the lake for other things? In short I vote for giant goose (or possibly swan) farms. The resultant guano-based fertiliser can explain the famous stench of the Mordor air.
*And has anyone ever written the Dr Doolittle crossover? What with bird spies who must be given instructions and have their reports understood, and their impressive achievements in training wolves as riding animals, I feel that some at least of the servants of Sauron might have a new Fourth Age career in the entertainment and industrial espionage industries.
**Speaking of which, if Boromir got off on the wrong foot with the Council of Elrond at times, maybe it would have helped if, having turned up at dawn with news of a prophecy, they had put it off for 24 hours to allow him time for a good night's rest and a change of clothes. Especially since they spend the next two months hanging around there.