December 18, 2002

Earendil the Mariner
Colin

I was doing a bit of thinking about Earendil the Mariner, specifically the nature of his great 'voyage'.

I'm composing this without the books at hand, so forgive any factual errors here. But, as I understand it, Earendil sailing across the sky with the Silmaril on his brow is both the morning and evening star, and he's ever vigilant in case Morgoth somehow escapes from his mysterious place of banishment. But is Earendil condemned to sail across the sky forever in his beautiful ship, or can he return to terra firma at any point?

I don't think Tolkien really addresses this issue in 'The Silmarillion' or 'Lord of the Rings' - I'd be curious to know if 'The History of Middle-earth' offers any further clues? I do remember that Earendil could never again return to Middle-earth, but could he land in Valinor? My feeling (hope!) is that he could, but I can't back this up with hard evidence. I'd just like to know what other people think?