Supplemental Woodland Realm Essay

This is a supplemental essay to my Tauriel’s Characterization essay, which goes over all three of our beloved elves’ characterizations and arcs in the The Hobbit films. You need to have read that essay for this one to make sense. Here I am going over the visuals in the films (like clothing and weapons), as well as expanding on elements from the films. I own none of the quotes or pictures included in this essay.

Also relevant to this supplemental essay is my Legolas’s Family History essay, which goes over all of Tolkien’s different texts relating to Thranduil and Legolas; and my Height Differences in The Hobbit post, which clarifies and compares the heights of many different characters (including Thranduil, Legolas, and Tauriel).

This supplemental essay is an expansion and slightly more formal version of a post I made on tumblr, about my favorite family in Tolkien.

My favorite family by far is Thranduil, Legolas, and Tauriel. In fact, the relationship between Thranduil and Tauriel is one of my all time favorites.

But first, the basics.

Thranduil is isolated and withdrawn because he has been tormented and traumatized by three Ages of tragedy. He clearly has strong PTSD.

Legolas and Tauriel were both born during the Watchful Peace. Legolas was a baby when his mother died, because he doesn’t have any memory of her. She was a Silvan Elf. Thranduil has protected and cared for Tauriel for 600 years, and she and Legolas aren’t likely to be much older than that. Legolas is slightly older than Tauriel, but both are ignorant to a lot of things. All we know of Legolas shows him to be a young, generally open-minded (he's only iffy on dwarves), humble, curious, loyal, and sassy yet easygoing, elf.

Tauriel clearly has no memory of personal loss before Kili, so she was a baby when her parents died and Thranduil took her in. After Kili's death, she is young, and heartbroken, and doesn’t understand why. She just wants the pain to stop. Tauriel cries out to Thranduil, confiding in him, pleading for him to save her and make it all go away. She is, in essence, a young child seeking her fathers comfort.

Instead of passing down his burdens and grudges (most of them, anyway; Legolas and Tauriel would have been present for everything with Thror) to Legolas and Tauriel, Thranduil had sheltered them, keeping them protected and safe, ignorant of the world's cruelties.

Thranduil and Tauriel have the exact same personality. They are both analytical. They both have an innate fierceness. They are both blunt. They both believe they are right, and don't care about the other side's viewpoint. They are both muleheaded. They both react to things by lashing out. They are both rebellious. They are both hotheaded. They both have an innate drive to lead. They are both confrontational.

I headcanon that Legolas was around the equivalent of an eight year old human when Thranduil took baby!Tauriel in. Evangeline Lilly said in several interviews that Tauriel's parents were killed by orcs, and that is the most likely way for them to have died. Tauriel’s name means “daughter of the forest,” and that is an exceptional name full of meaning. Thranduil must have given it to her.

Tauriel is incredibly passionate about truth and justice. Her fundamental conflict with Thranduil came from the fact that she had no understanding of why he made the choices he did. When he says that her pain over Kili's death is because her love was real, she realizes this anguish is what he experiences every day, and the reason why he has made the decisions he has. It’s not about letting evil become strong, evil is strong. And it will hurt you without mercy. Tauriel finally understands this, and Thranduil.

And in turn, Thranduil finally understands and validates her. Because while Tauriel's actions weren't morally right, her point was. They do not truly live, locked inside the Woodland Realm. Yes, evil has always been present; but it will continue to grow, and to come after them. There is no way to truly lock the rest of the world out. Is a life that's hiding, and not truly lived, worth others dying? Is it worth letting evil win? Good deeds are good deeds. It does not matter what comes after. We are all a part of this world, and we all have an obligation to stand and fight for what is right. So while Thranduil's isolation is understandable, it isn't morally right.

There is no doubt in my mind that Tauriel returns to the Woodland Realm after BotFA. Tauriel’s not going to sail or stop fighting - that goes against every fiber of her being, and would be letting evil win. But she is brokenhearted, and for the first time in a long time she and Thranduil understand each other and are emotionally open with each other. Tauriel desperately needs her daddy, and the distance between them and their conflicts are now gone. They can support each other and rule together.

But that is how the films end.

We see over and over that the only people above Tauriel in rank are Thranduil and Legolas. However, we only see Legolas co-lead a patrol, give a few small and isolated orders, hold and interrogate the orc at Thranduil’s cue (this itself is very interesting - since Tauriel is technically the one of lowest rank, she should be the one holding the orc and asking the questions. Instead, Legolas is), and convey Thranduil’s orders to their people. 

It is Tauriel who has to give Thranduil the report on the spiders and is immediately given charge when the dwarves escape. She is the Captain General. Legolas is more of a follower than a leader, and that is why he does not have any other role other than that of Prince.

Contrary to his stern visage, Thranduil was a very lenient parent – there is far too much back talk and defiance from both Legolas and Tauriel for him to have been a stern parent. He was sterner with Tauriel, but she also has much more of an active role than Legolas does in running the realm, and his personality. Both Thranduil and Tauriel tend to show their softer emotions through actions and not words.

As children, Legolas and Tauriel were mischievous hell-demons that caused untold chaos - after all, both Legolas and Kili are sassy menaces. Tauriel isn’t as light-hearted and sassy as them, but she must have a very mischievous side. That combined with her innate strategy and leadership skills makes her a master prankster. Neither liked having lessons, but Tauriel payed more attention than Legolas. Legolas learned about Gundabad in his lessons. Tauriel threw huge temper tantrums when Legolas got to do something new and she didn’t, because she wasn’t old enough.

Tauriel felt the distinction of being the King’s foster child as she got older, and she is naturally independent. She is not a scholar, but is fierce and has a deep need to combat evil - this is the manisfestation of her dedication to truth and justice. As soon as she came of age, Tauriel dedicated herself to training as a warrior. The combination of her passion with her innate strategy and leadership skills made her quickly rise through the ranks.

But Tauriel also has a soft and awkard side. She has left the forest some nights so she can stargaze. Starlight is sacred memory, precious and pure; and she loves and reveres it. She loves deeply, even though she has a hard time verbally expressing it, and is terrified of her love for Kili. Though she is a phenomenal warrior and leader who can respond to sass without hesitation, she is also socially awkward and resorts to immediately leaving a situation she doesn't know how to handle. As soon as she realizes that Kili was playing a prank on her, she finds it funny because she is an equally big dork and shares his quirky sense of humor.

Legolas sounds like a captain at times and is capable of leading, but he prefers to follow and be the support. He is loyal. He is humble, never mentioning his heritage, and introducing himself as merely one of the Fellowship. He is generally light-hearted, yet serious when he needs to be, and quick to defend and forgive. He is open-hearted, selfless, and kind. He expresses sadness and fear, but never lets it control him. He is sassy, fanciful, and dramatic; and yet realistic about the situations he is in. His curiosity is insatiable. Throughout all of his words and actions, there is an undercurrent of steadiness. His heart is firmly in the forest. He also has a deep love for music, and frequently creates his own songs (all of this is in book!LotR).

Tauriel, Legolas, and Thranduil are the only Elven fighters to ever use two dual blades. This is another thing that highlights their family unit. I headcanon that this fighting style came from Doriath and that Thranduil passed it down to Legolas and Tauriel. Thranduil would want both of them to be as lethal as possible for their own safety and protection, and duty requires Legolas to be a trained warrior. I headcanon that Thranduil gifted Legolas and Tauriel with their specific weapons when they completed their respective training.

We're going to switch for a moment to the White Gems of Lasgalen. “Lasgalen” means “greenleaves”, and after LotR Thranduil will rename his realm “Eryn Lasgalen/Wood of Greenleaves”. “Legolas” means “greenleaf”, and he is referred to (in both the books and films) as “Legolas Greenleaf”. Thranduil says that the gems are heirlooms of his people. The gems of Lasgalen are Thranduil’s crown jewels. 

So how did Thranduil’s crown jewels end up in Erebor? Thror was born in TA 2542 (82 years after the end of the Watchful Peace), Smaug attacked in TA 2770. Tauriel and Legolas are likely only a little over 600 years old in TA 2941; 600 years before was 2341. Legolas was a baby when his mother died.

Obviously the jewelry couldn’t have been created for Thranduil’s wife by the dwarves of Erebor, she had been dead for at least 429 years when Smaug attacked. Also, if Thror was still expected to give them back to Thranduil in TA 2770 (as the prologue shows), the dwarves couldn’t have had them any longer than a few years. Another question is why the dwarves had to do work on them, and not Thranduil’s own people. The films don’t give us an answer, but I have a headcanon that works with all the facts we are given:

The White Gems of Lasgalen are family heirlooms of Thranduil’s and came from Doriath. He gave them to his wife as a gift; and he then found the necklace on the ground, broken, near a few dead orcs, at the spot where she was taken captive (she and Legolas had been out in the woods). She had hidden baby!Legolas in a tree, before running in the opposite direction (thus saving his life). The orcs tortured her to death in Gundabad. A few years before TA 2770, before the Arkenstone is found and Thror succumbs to dragon sickness, Thranduil gives them to Thror to have the necklace fixed because his people don’t have the skill needed to fix such craftsmanship from First Age dwarves.

Before we move on to the visuals, there is one last thing I want to touch on. It is clear that Legolas's relationship with Aragorn is greatly influenced by having witnessed Tauriel's relationship with Kili - Legolas chooses to stay in Middle-earth until the end of Aragorn's life because he has seen that Tauriel's regret is as piercing as her grief (for more on Legolas and Aragorn, see here). He tells Gimli:

“Nay!” said Legolas. “Alas for us all! And for all that walk the world in these after-days. For such is the way of it: to find and lose, as it seems to those whose boat is on the running stream. But I count you blessed, Gimli son of Glóin: for your loss you suffer of your own free will, and you might have chosen otherwise. But you have not forsaken your companions, and the least reward that you shall have is that the memory of Lothlórien shall remain ever clear and unstained in your heart, and shall neither fade nor grow stale.” - Lord of the Rings, Farewell to Lórien

And later, when again speaking to Gimli, Legolas will reiterate Tauriel's moral message:

“Follow what may, great deeds are not lessened in worth,” said Legolas. “Great deed was the riding of the Paths of the Dead, and great it shall remain, though none be left in Gondor to sing of it in the days that are to come.” - Lord of the Rings, The Last Debate

Aragorn also knows this:

“A time may come soon,” said he, “when none will return. Then there will be need of valour without renown, for none shall remember the deeds that are done in the last defense of your homes. Yet the deeds will not be less valiant because they are unpraised.” - Lord of the Rings, The Passing of the Grey Company

Now, the visuals!

You can learn a lot about a character through their aesthetics, and the Chronicles give us lots of wonderful insights. Although for some unfathomable reason, they really only talk about the second of Legolas and Tauriel’s outfits, and only a couple of Thranduil’s. Unfortunately I won’t be able to say much about the others, because I’m not good with telling different materials, and those kinds of things.

First, though, we're going to go over the insights into Elven movement and nature.

In my Tauriel essay, I summarized elvish nature:

The foundation of elven-kind is memory and emotion. Their mind/will/soul controls their body, because their souls are bound to the Unseen Plane. This means so many things. They feel bodily desires, but the desires have no control or sway over them. Let me give an example. If we touch a hot surface our body responds immediately, jerking back. Our body is in control, we don't consciously decide to move back. That's not true for elves. Their body never overrides their mind. 

Elvish memories remain crystal clear, no matter how many decades or centuries pass. They never fade, even the slightest bit. Connected to memory is emotion. Elves feel things in a clearer way. They are ruled by emotion. They can literally just lie down and kill themselves with their mind, if they wish.

There are some wonderful quotes from the Chonicles about Elven nature and movement:

It's really about undoing everything. For someone playing an Elf, it's about stripping back everything and starting again from neutral. 

You have to soften the body, beginning in a relaxed, aligned state. We do a lot of Alexander Technique work, breathing in to the side ribs, lengthening through the torso and drawing into the core, but not tightening anything on the outside. The front body softens and widens through the shoulders, lengthening through the neck and letting the neck fall forward and then again coming to a stand. We did a lot of sitting and standing with the Elves because it's all about ease and grace and form without being aware of oneself. 

[cut] 

Elves have this innate beauty, the kind possessed by a person who is unaware of how beautiful they are. They have a kind of sixth sense that permits them to see everything all around them at once. They listen with their backs, drawing in and becoming completely centred and neutral in their bodies. So, when they look at something, they don't look to discover it, but instead look with a knowing, as if they know what they will see. You might think that knowingness would remove you emotionally, but it doesn't. You actually become more emotionally involved because you're listening and feeling even more and you're allowing yourself to be open and to feel everything. You opening up your fear centre and releasing the neck, which as human beings we tense if we don't feel comfortable. Becoming an Elf, a person draws in, allowing themselves to feel. For an Elf, everything has a fluidity and a sense of connection and harmony with nature.  

[cut] 

Imagine a five-year-old sitting on a beach, looking out at the ocean, perfect, relaxed, content and just listening - that is the perfect Elf. 

[cut] 

I offer images for them to work with that may help them find the right state. Elves have an internal core that is soft and flexible. They're beings of nature, of the wind. They move from their back, as if propelled by a wind, but then settling as a breeze pushes them from the front till they're held by these two energies, lifting them. If an actor has an image in their head then they will feel it and we will see it rather than if they are trying to emulate someone else's performance. - AUJ Chronicles II; Terry Notary, Movement Coach, pg 126-7 

It's about putting the body back into its most natual state, like a tree, relaxed and sensitive. The image of seaweed in the water comes to mind; a balloon floating on a string. - AUJ Chronicles II; Lee Pace, Actor, Thranduil, pg 127 

Elves were flowing in their movement and we devised patterns for them based on the count of three, like a waltz. They floated through space, but with a solid foundation. They moved from their backs, as if being gently pressed forward from the small of their backs. - BotFA Art of War; Terry Notary, Movement Coach, pg 156

Orlando Bloom and Lee Pace have also had some great insights:

Orlando: I always think of him as a cat, in a way. You know how a cat will hop up onto a table and just stop. With no forward motion. It will just stop there. And it will be sitting still and alert on top of the table. It's kind of like that. They have this kind of graceful poised movement that's always switched on. (source) 

Lee: Elven movement training that we’ve done with Terry is kind of given me my entire character. It’s not even about movement, as much as it is about thought, kind of like as the wind and the ocean pulls and pushes, it’s like that’s how they move through space. (source) 

Lee: A tiger was a good symbol for him because he’s dangerous, he’s not your friend. Tigers, they are beautiful, they are complicated, they are vicious. That’s how he is. [cut] Formidable. Like a great tree in the forest. A very old, strong tree. It’s not going anywhere. But it’s very much alive. It’s not a stone. 

[cut] 

The Elves, in a close Earth parallel, would be zen to what they are. They are very connected to nature, but there’s something about him that’s corrupted. [cut] Well, the way I fill that gap is thinking about a tiger, thinking about a bear. They are absolutely in tune with nature. They are natural things, but they’ll kill you. If you cross their path, you’re at their mercy. And there is a zen to that. It happens, that’s the natural order. If you offend a bear, if you make a bear feel uncomfortable, then can you blame him for biting your head off? You knew what was coming. And that’s been actually a really fun thing with Thranduil. He’s powerful, he is a formidable figure. 

[cut] 

Yeah, that patience, isolation, stillness, it’s that – If you’ve ever been in the woods in the middle of winter and it just is absolutely timeless. When you don’t see any other buildings around and it’s just snow and quiet and absolute stillness, you feel like it has been like this for thousands of years. That’s what I think about Mirkwood. It’s old. It’s an old, old place, and he’s a part of that. These halls are very old, and he’s known to be older than that. From the great elves of the past, that’s where he grew up. So there is a tradition that he brings into Mirkwood. And I believe patience is a part of that. (source) 

Lee: To me, Thranduil is a spirit of the woods, like a wild thing, like a panther. Some people have said that he’s a bad guy. But he isn’t bad. He’s not your friend. He’s not interested in being well liked. (source) 

Lee: Thranduil is not bad, he’s just badass. You can’t compare him to humans because he’s not human. He’s wild. If you encounter a bear in the woods and it mauls you, you can’t say it’s evil. It’s a wild thing. Do you know what I mean? He’s a king, a significant king, a formidable force in this world. He makes no secret of it – he’s not devious. He know he has rules and principles. (source) 

Lee: They are beings close to nature, trees and animals. Just as if they were tigers. And my character is an old tree, half tiger half-tree. I would say even a lizard. The elves are being very down to Earth and are in constant touch with the natural elements. And I’m the king of this world. He [Thranduil] is an extremely powerful being. Peter and I have worked on my character for more than three years. What is also different with Thranduil, is that he is alone and haunted by this eternal life. But he has the power to change his destiny and others’. 

[cut] 

What is also fascinating to me is how my character controls his strength and power. He never abuses his power and does not show it, although we are going to see in the third film that he knows how to fight and I had to face quite some scenes of action! (source) 

Lee: I don't want the wealth, you know? He's a natural wild creature. He wants the white gems that are there because they mean something, they're heirlooms of his people and they mean something. 

[cut] 

But, like the Mirkwood is corrupted, he's also corrupted. I think that the elves at their best, there's a sense of kind of harmony and - I don't wanna use the word lightly, but - zen, about their understanding of nature, about their understanding of time. But, as we all know, from our experience on this earth, it just takes a little bit of pain, a little bit disappointment, a little bit of want to corrupt that. 

That's what I was very interested in finding in Thranduil - that's the complexity. What are the gems that he wants in that mountain? What is the reason that he shuts his doors and avoids the conflict that is the very wild Middle-earth around him? He is one of those legendary warriors still living in Middle-earth. [cut] He is a great Elf, in a long, long, magnificent tradition of Elves. He knows how it was done in the old days. And he's choosing not to get involved, he's choosing not to fight, and I find that very interesting. (source)

I could talk about Thranduil all day, but there is only one thing Lee got wrong. Elves aren't like tigers or panthers, they're like leopards:

Leopards are astoundingly strong. They are pound for pound the strongest of the big cats. They are able to climb trees, even when carrying heavy prey, and often choose to rest on tree branches during the day. One reason why leopards sometimes take their prey up in the trees is to ensure lions or hyenas can’t steal them. 

Leopards are renowned for their agility. They run up to 58km/h and can leap 6m horizontally and 3m vertically. They are also very strong swimmers. 

The leopard is the most elusive and secretive of the large felids. They are extremely difficult to trace and locate in the wild. 

Like cats kept as companions, leopards will growl when angry and purr when content. They have various vocalisations such as a rasping cough which they perform to announce their presence to other leopards. 

During the National Geographic programme ‘Eye of the Leopard’, a wild leopard killed a baboon in order to feed herself. However upon noticing an infant baboon clinging to the dead baboon, the leopard amazingly carried the infant up to the safety of the tree to guard her from hyenas. She groomed and cuddled the baby throughout the night, caring for him/her as she would her own cub. 

Leopards have the widest range of habitats of all the big cats. This adaptability has allowed them to survive in various different geographic areas. Perhaps the most extreme example is the amazing snow leopard which lives in the Himalayas. (source)

Now, enough from me about Elven movement! We're moving on to Mirkwood.

Beorn: “A darkness lies upon that forest. Fell things creep beneath those trees. There is an alliance between the Orcs of Moria and the Necromancer in Dol Guldur. I would not venture there except in great need.” 

Gandalf: “We will take the Elven Road. That path is still safe.” 

Beorn: “Safe? The Wood-Elves of Mirkwood are not like their kin. They’re less wise and more dangerous.” 

and: 

Bilbo: “This forest feels sick, as if a disease lies upon it. Is there no way around?”

The “less wise and more dangerous” line always gets me, because hello, they have a Dark Lord living in and corrupting their forest for about one and a half millennia! They have to be dangerous!

Sauron’s power makes the dwarves hallucinate and has turned the Enchanted River toxic. From Tolkien’s texts:

But after many years, when well nigh a third of that age of the world had passed, a darkness crept slowly through the wood from the southward, and fear walked there in shadowy glades; fell beasts came hunting, and cruel and evil creatures laid there their snares. Then the name of the forest was changed and Mirkwood it was called, for the nightshade lay deep there, and few dared to pass through, save only in the north where Thranduil’s people still held the evil at bay. 

[cut] But ever the shadow in Mirkwood grew deeper, and to Dol Guldur evil things repaired out of all the dark places of the world; and they were united again under one will, and their malice was directed against the Elves and the survivors of Númenor. - The Silmarillion, Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age 

Legolas: “It was that very night of summer, yet moonless and starless, that Orcs came on us at unawares. We drove them off after some time; they were many and fierce, but they came from over the mountains, and were unused to the woods. When the battle was over, we found that Gollum was gone, and his guards were slain or taken. It then seemed plain to us that the attack had been made for his rescue, and that he knew of it beforehand. How that was contrived we cannot guess; but Gollum is cunning, and the spies of the Enemy are many. The dark things that were driven out in the year of the Dragon’s fall have returned in greater numbers, and Mirkwood is again an evil place, save where our realm is maintained.” - Lord of the Rings, The Council of Elrond 

It is thus most likely that the first news of Gollum would be learned by the servants of Dol Guldur after Aragorn entered the Forest; for though the power of Dol Guldur was supposed to come to an end at the Old Forest Road, its spies were many in the wood. [cut] But evidently later (since the lands of Thranduil would now be closely watched), possibly a month later, Sauron heard the disquieting news that the Wise were aware of Gollum, and that Gandalf had passed into Thranduil’s realm. - Unfinished Tales, The Hunt for the Ring 

He lifted his eyes across the river and all the light went out, and he was back again in the world he knew. Beyond the river the land appeared flat and empty, formless and vague, until far away it rose again like a wall, dark and drear. The sun that lay on Lothlórien had no power to enlighten the shadow of that distant height.  

“There lies the fastness of Southern Mirkwood,” said Haldir. “It is clad in a forest of dark fir, where the trees strive one against another and their branches rot and wither. In the midst upon a stony height stands Dol Guldur, where long the hidden Enemy had his dwelling. We fear that now it is inhabited again, and with power sevenfold. A black cloud lies often over it of late.” -  Lord of the Rings, Lothlórien 

Anborn: “A large squirrel, maybe. Perhaps under the shadow of the Unnamed some of the beasts of Mirkwood are wandering hither to our woods. They have black squirrels there, 'tis said.” 

“Perhaps,” said Faramir. “But that would be an ill omen, if it were so. We do not want the escapes of Mirkwood in Ithilien.” - Lord of the Rings, The Window on the West

Not only is Mirkwood itself corrupted, Sauron has evil animals spying on the elves. The horrors of Mirkwood are so great there are even tales about them in Gondor.

Being a diseased forest, we have a lot of strangling vines and fungi that are eating the trees. The tree bases are rotting. There’s a lot of algae growth on the bark creating different colours, as well as mosses, lichens, and poisonous-looking stuff. The light in the forest is either moonlight or heavily filtered sunlight. [cut] Sickly, brightly-coloured growths in forests often suggest poison and the atmosphere in Mirkwood is thick with disorienting fungal spores that fog the mind. To illustrate the effect on the Dwarves we decided to make everything slightly psychedelic. - DoS Art & Design; Dan Hennah, Production Designer, pg 41 

Getting through this forest couldn’t be easy. It had to look hard. It’s not just walking in a straight line. They have to clamber over logs and rotten wood. There are places where they could put their feet through or where things can give way. At times they might not even realize they’re not walking on the true forest floor any more. There are thorns and fungi that shouldn’t be touched, and places to trip. And they have no idea what’s lurking inside the hollows of the decaying trees. - DoS Art & Design; Gus Hunter, Weta Workshop Designer, pg 42

Thranduil’s Halls.

Amid their carved tree pillars the Elves have created beautiful brass fixing oil lamps with hollowed out amber, casting a warm light. And there are seams of amber in everything. It’s all still very Art Nouveau, as is the pervading Elven aesthetic, even though they’re underground. - DoS Art & Design; Dan Hennah, Production Designer, pg 75 

Descending into the underground Elven kingdom, Peter wanted to see an environment with a lot of depth. He wanted to look through layers of pillars and big winding roots, creating a really big space. Imagining what might light this place, in addition to torches, I though there would maybe be stalactites filled with pockets of oil that the Elves would light. That could be quite beautiful, especially with a misty atmosphere created by waterfalls and reflections in water. 

The throne room would be the centerpiece of the kingdom, with passages and networks of root walkways winding towards it. There would be waterfalls and streams as the water cascades down through hollow roots. It would be an enchanting place. - DoS Art & Design; Gus Hunter, Weta Workshop Designer, pg 73 

Thranduil’s throne sits in a room at the top of the cavern. Coming in the front door, walkways lead you over tree roots and between carved trees, slowly ascending until you reach his audience chamber and there is his grand throne. - DoS Art & Design; Dan Hennah, Production Designer, pg 76 

We created countless concepts, trying to fix on a style and colour, but Peter’s feedback brought us to the idea that Thranduil’s throne room was really part of a much larger area and that he would always be looking off into great distances. - DoS Art & Design; Alan Lee, Concept Art Director, pg 77 

The lighting in the caverns is evocative of sunlight piercing a leafy canopy. It’s a kind of petrified woodland environment and all the decorative tracery is based on trees, limbs and leaves, with animals in there as well. The backlit amber was something of a theme for Mirkwood during a lot of the developmental drawings. - DoS Art & Design; Alan Lee, Concept Art Designer, pg 75 

But Thranduil’s halls are hardly just a dark cavern. They are a subterranean forest of stone, with elegantly sculpted columns and architraves echoing tree branches, the whole transversed by the gigantic roots forming natural staircases and walkways. Imagine a forest cathedral, bathed in light, with no symmetry, grown from the living stone, where you could follow twisting pathways high in midair through the cave. - DoS Art & Design; John Howe, Concept Art Director, pg 91 

Being Elvish, it can’t just be a miserable prison. They have an aesthetic so we designed Elven cell doors made out of bronze, heavy and functional, but embracing that distinctly Elven look and carrying on the theme of an underground forest that runs through Thranduil’s realm. 

The entire environment has been shaped to be like a subterranean forest. The Elves have even collected amber and used it almost the way we might use glass, shaping it to their needs, hollowing it to make lanterns containing oil and framed with intricate metal tracery, casting a beautiful golden light. This mingles with filtered light coming from cracks far above and the ever-present dripping of water finding its way down to the underground river far below. - DoS Art & Design; Dan Hennah, Production Designer, pg 90 

One thing Peter wanted to get across was that this place was a prison. Even being Elf-made, he didn’t want it to look too elegant so we had to find the right balance between Elven craftsmanship and Elven intractability. - DoS Art & Design; Alan Lee, Concept Art Director, pg 91 

Something that became iconic for the Woodland elves was their use of amber. We weren’t able to express the idea as fully in the set build as we wanted to but we ran with it in the props and set dressing. The inclusion of amber was a raging success in my opinion. It was a materials breakthrough for the furniture and prop makers. It began as a random idea, but our people kept striving to solve the technical challenges of these amber veins running through the wood until they succeeded. The results were beautiful pieces of woodworking with translucent pools like honey running through them. The tables were oak with sections of resin that had particles of tree matter in them. They were gorgeous objects. - DoS Cloaks & Daggers; Ra Vincent, Set Decorator, pg 194
Many of the vessels are made of wood, with transparent and hardened resin appearing as veins of amber. - DoS Art & Design; John Howe, Concept Art Director, pg 95

I have always loved Art Nouveau, and I really want to move in! 

My personal tastes aside, though, the filmmakers did a wonderful job in creating a home that tells us a lot about the Woodland Elves. And the fact that Thranduil’s throne room is in a high and centered position also tells us a lot - it’s closer to the surface and thus to danger, and it’s centered because it’s a central part of the realm.

An interesting diversion from writing wine labels was the creation of the rules of a game called Tile Forest, which uses a set of beautiful tiles made by the props department. I started with an idea based on a cross between mah-jong and Chinese Chequers, but soon found myself inventing an entirely new game, and writing out its entire method from start to finish. I can’t wait to play it! - DoS Cloaks & Daggers; Daniel Reeve, Graphic Artist, pg 195

This is just a fun little thing I couldn’t not share. It looks like a very interesting game!

Before we get to our three main Elves, I want to go over how the rest of the Woodland Realm is set up. It’s crucial to understanding my three beloveds.

There are several different groups of fighters. First we meet the Hunters:

While the Elves hold the evil at bay in the Woodland Realm, their garment reflect the spiky and perilous nature of the forest. This distinction between armour, clothing and camouflage is blurred, outlines unclear, akin to the dappled sunlight seen in a dark wood. These Elves are shadow figures, swift, invisible and deadly, far wilder and more dangerous than the stately immortals of Rivendell. Rather than aloof and serene, they are edgy and almost predatory. Nonetheless their garments are incredibly detailed and elegant, a tight-fitting melange of metal, cloth and leather. - DoS Art & Design; John Howe, Concept Art Director, pg 56 

The main challenge with these Elves was that they had to look light and swift and yet strong, without being encumbered by armour. The way round this was to use strong-looking components of textured and plain leather and incorporate some metal gauze and leaf mail, along with laser-cut leather leaves in a kind of corset or body protector, which was a little different on each Elf. - DoS Art & Design; Ann Maskrey, Costume Designer, pg 59 

In the end we resolved the design in the Costume Department by creating corset-like body pieces that used combinations of leather, both plain and textured, laser-cut leather and metal leafmaille as we a metal gauze. [cut] The rest of their main garment worn underneath was a fitted coat made from soft textured fabric which looked bark-like, the tails of which were cut into six separate leaf-shaped pieces. These were lined in blotch-dyed silk habotai with attached shreds of the same fabric looking like scattered leaves. The costumes were either mainly green or brown but when they moved the cat tails were light enough to lift and flash the brighter colours of the silk. - DoS Cloaks & Daggers; Ann Maskrey, Costume Designer, pg 177 

At one point I began opening up the blades of Elven weapons, creating leaf-shaped voids in the metal itself. 'Negative space’ suddenly became the design catchword. It was a guiding theme in the Elven designs, appearing in the blades and pommels of their daggers and swords, their lances and even their arrowheads. - DoS Art & Design; John Howe, Concept Art Director, pg 60

They use shortbows and daggers.

Then we meet the Palace Guards:

We arrived at something quite sinister and statuesque for the Elven palace guards. Taking cues from the pole arm designs that John Howe had been doing, we had cut outs in the helmet fans that Paul had been putting on his Elves. I also quite liked the idea of partial, rather than full, helmets like skull caps or masks, with veils that hid the face. They evoked a predatory bird-like quality. 

We derived some of the armour shapes from overlapping leaves, though we ended up breaking them up to be a little more abstract and ambiguous rather than literal leaf forms, which could be a bit fairy-like. - DoS Art & Design; Nick Keller, Weta Workshop Designer, pg 81 

From the outset we wanted to do something different and special with the Mirkwood Elves. It was a complex brief – the notion of a society of Elves, whom we have associated until now with the bright and airy treetops our mountains, living in an underground palace of roots and caverns. They had carved a hidden kingdom for themselves below the rotting forest and there, safe beneath their stronghold of earth, they conducted their Elven business with all the regal pageantry of a proud imperial society. We wanted armour and weapons influenced by the environment in which they existed and once again drew upon organic art movements of our own world for inspiration, incorporating shapes, textures and patterns from the fungi, leaves and tangled roots of their palace fortress. We were careful to balance this organic earthy quality with a very considered and thoughtful graphic lines, a powerful silhouette and a level of ornamentation that only the Elves could bring to their armour. - DoS Cloaks & Daggers; Richard Taylor, Weta Workshop Design and Special Effects Supervisor, pg 179

We see the Palace Guards use pole-arms, swords, and shields. We don’t see it in the films, but in the trailers we see the Palace Guards wield a bow:

This makes a lot of sense for when they are outside - bows are the longest ranging weapon, after all. Inside, they are the ones present when Thranduil is in his throne room, and they take Thorin away and leave when Thranduil leaves (opposite direction though).

Then we meet the Soldiers:

They use pole-arms, longbows, swords, and shields.

Last but certainly not least, we have Thranduil’s Guards/Officers:

The main bulk of the Elven army’s weapons and armour were all painted in the bronzes and greens of sapling trees, what we considered the Mirkwood Elf palette. Thranduil was in silver, so in between we had the officers, who wore essentially the same components as the regular troops but with a colour change that had more grey and silver. Their helmets were also a bit different, with a wider crest and different cheek guards. Even with the colour change, we still had the woodgrain pattern running through their armour, which looked so cool. - BotFA Art of War; Rob Gillies, Weta Workshop Supervisor, pg 108 

The fan shape of the helmet crest became a very strong element in the design, became quite dramatic in the final version. We had officers’ and standard soldiers’ versions as well, which included some variation in colour. - BotFA Art & Design; Nick Keller, Weta Workshop Designer, pg 124

We can tell from the screencaps that the same four actors played Thranduil’s Guards throughout the films - the first one on the right in the AUJ prologue is to the right of the tent in BotFA.

However, we have an exception: the wonderful Feren. We see him several times in DoS and BotFA - he blows the horn at Legolas’s order, he delivers Thranduil’s message about Tauriel’s banishment, he finds Thranduil in Dale and again blows his horn to signal the retreat, and the Scouts then quickly show up and get behind him. This is the only time we see the Scouts.

Elven Scouts: We had seen the mottled and textured camouflage of the hunters and the formal armour of the palace guards in The Desolation of Smaug, but our first new Elven costumes in The Battle of the Five Armies were the Silvan travelling wear. [cut] We kept the colours autumnal and the imagery derived from barbed vines and creeping organic matter of the kind with which Mirkwood was filled. [cut] I imagined they would be agile and rely on their speed and stealth rather than armour. They were more like a Special Forces unit, moving quickly and unseen, so lighter clothing was essential. - BotFA Art & Design; Bob Buck, Costume Designer, pg 128

The Scouts seem to only have shortbows.

Feren is not one of Thranduil’s four main Guards/Officers, and his act of being Thranduil’s messenger makes his role much more personal. The fact that the Scouts immediately fall into place behind him, and that this is the first time that we see him during the battle, leads me to believe he was their leader/cordinator and is one step above the other four Officers. Indeed, he almost seems to be like a personal assistant.

The other elf worth mentioning is Elros (I know, we’re ignoring the name). He is the hunter in the picture above, so he is a part of the patrol that captures the dwarves. He is “The Keeper of the Keys” - he scolds Galion about the barrels and Galion talks him into getting drunk, thus letting Bilbo get ahold of the keys. The next and final time we see him is when he worriedly tells Legolas that Tauriel has gone into the forest:

This set up only makes sense to me if the many Soldiers were also the Hunters and Palace Guards; because with Thranduil’s worldview, the Woodland Elves purposefully stay away from battle. 

Being essentially the Captain General (“Captain of the Guard”), Tauriel is in charge of everyone.

Now, Tauriel!

Tauriel’s weapons are similar to the Hunters’ weapons, but they are still unique to her.

Tauriel’s daggers started out with Thranduil but Peter chose the design for her. They have a thorn-like shape and could be used with a reverse grip, which I thought might suggest an interesting fighting style that would differ from and complement Legolas’s dual dagger technique. - DoS Art & Design; Paul Tobin, Weta Workshop Designer, pg 63 

Tauriel’s knives had to be very slim, elegant little blades. The position of where she would wear them changed a few times before settling in the small of her back, under her hair, where Matt Appleton devised a discreet rig for them to hang, handles down. - DoS Cloaks & Daggers; Alex Falkner, Weta Workshop Props Model Making Supervisor, pg 185 

Choosing how my weapons would be worn was another great example of how inclusive and collaborative the working relationships on these movies have been. I was very concerned about Tauriel’s incredible, long red locks getting in the way of drawing her knives and arrows from her scabbards and quiver. Working together with Weta Workshop’s team we devised brackets that would bring the weapons further around my body than would be traditionally worn, so that I could draw them out from the front of my body. I love my weapons and I love Tauriel’s knife draw! - DoS Cloaks & Daggers; Evangeline Lilly, Actress, Tauriel, pg 185

We’re now going to look at the outfit the Chronicles doesn’t talk about.

Tauriel’s daggers are in their usual position. Her outfit definitely fits with the shadowy camouflage style of the Hunters’ outfits, and her cuirass has a wonderful leaf design. We know that the scarf/hood piece is not attached.

While the Chronicles doesn't talk about this outfit, the Desolation of Smaug Movie Guide says:

She has leggings of stretch velvet with a print of scattered leaves and a coat-dress that has a fitted bodice and sleeves over which she wears a corset in gilded brown Italian leather. The skirt of the coat comprises elongated, overlapping leaf shaped in a green fabric textured like tree-bark and line with light-weight Habotai silk, mottle-dyed green and brown and with tiny fabric shapes like scraps of leaf providing a subtle texture that can be glimpsed as she moves. - DoS Movie Guide, Costume Designer Ann Maskrey, pg 82

I wish we had better pictures of her leggings and boots, but at least we have a close-up of the leaf cut-outs on her bracers. They are so beautiful!

This is the same outfit, except she’s taken off the scarf/hood and changed from her cuirass into a half-corset.

We also see her wear the scarf/hood with her other outfit:

So far Tauriel’s aesthetics have been shadowy, spiky, and deadly. While this certainly fits her personality, there is also more to her.

Tauriel’s costume was designed in layers that could be removed to provide slightly different looks. Her outermost layer was a leaf green travelling coat of raw silk, that was dyed over a weekend by Paula Collier, lined with a lightweight silk of a lighter colour so that when she moved it would catch the light and flash. The pattern we devised was sleeveless, with a deep hood that hung down her back. I cut the bodice of the coat to match the lines of her leather cuirass, which projected just above the low neckline of the coat on her chest. - DoS Cloaks & Daggers; Lesley Burkes-Harding, Costume Designer, Legolas and Tauriel, pg 186 

The cuirass Tauriel wore was an olive leather, made at Weta Workshop, constructed by Cathy 'Tree’ Harris and gorgeously detailed by Kelly Marie with input from Daniel Falconer. [cut] I was thrilled with how the lines worked on that cuirass. It was a striking standalone garment made in a fine leather, with finishing by James Rogers. It looked like polished wood. 

[cut] Beneath her coat and cuirass Tauriel wore a fine deerskin jacket. The jacket had long sleeves made in four parts, exquisitely faggoted together by Katherine Pepperell in gently curving lines that traced their paths down her arms. The original line of the costume had a smaller collar. Fran like the line, but wanted a bigger collar, which turned out to be a very good call. [cut] We had so little time that we simply added a second collar which unfolded over the top and serendipitously ended up looking very elegant, carrying the line that started down her front all the way up and into her delicate ear tips.  

The travelling coat had skirts to it, but when Evangeline wasn’t wearing it we had a second skirt that went with her jacket. It would have been too many layers and added too much bulk to have both skirts on Tauriel at once, so she always wore one or the other. We created a subtle leaf-like veining that organically traced its way across the suede and was applied by Johnny Brough and Daniel Falconer in the paint department at Weta Workshop. 

[cut] I wanted Tauriel to have her quiver on a waist belt because I felt it was the most natural place for it to go. She already had her knives on her back, so slinging it off her hip made sense. There was a hint of the old west gunslinger in the tilted belt that also made her appear confident and dangerous. The leaf pattern on her belt was drawn directly from the Mirkwood quiver belt that Legolas wore in The Lord of the Rings, a subtle link between the trilogies, but her buckles were new designs created just for these films. - DoS Cloaks & Daggers; Lesley Burkes-Harding, Costume Designer, Legolas and Tauriel, pg 187

Tauriel is pared down for her scenes with Thranduil and Kili in DoS:

Even though Tauriel is inside her home, she keeps one of her daggers attached to her belt, as a more low-key state of being armed. She also never takes off her bracers.

We get a peek of her undershirt:

And she is wearing her necklace in these two scenes:

Elves revere starlight, so I included the shape of a star held in the gentle embrace of some barbs. There’s a little danger there, because they are sharp, but beauty as well. - DoS Art & Design; Bob Buck, Costume Designer, pg 66

This description fits Tauriel perfectly - beautiful and soft, and dangerous and sharp, all at the same time.

The color and size of the gem looks exactly like the White Gems of Lasgalen:

In DoS, Thranduil calls them “white gems of pure starlight.” The gem in Tauriel’s necklace definitely fits that description. Therefore, it is likely Thranduil had the necklace made for Tauriel with one of the starlight gems. I headcanon that it was for her coming of age.

Tauriel is wearing eyeliner, unlike Arwen or Galadriel. She is also exceptionally beautiful, even for an elf, because of her hair: 

All the Eldar had beautiful hair (and were especially attracted by hair of exceptional loveliness), but the Noldor were not specially remarkable in this respect, and there is no reference to Finwë as having had hair of exceptional length, abundance, or beauty beyond the measure of his people. - The Shibboleth of Fëanor

What have we learned about Tauriel? She is practical and prefers simpler designs. She likes corsets and corset styled tops. Her various designs truly do reflect her personality - beautiful and soft, and dangerous and sharp, all at the same time.

Now, Legolas!

Unlike Tauriel’s bow, Legolas’s is very similar to the longbows used by the Soldiers. He also does not have any cut outs in his weapons, unlike the rest of the weapons the Woodland Elves use. Overall, the designs of his weapons are much more soft.

We’re now going to look at the two outfits the Chronicles doesn’t talk about.

We have some more of the wonderful leafmaille. These are two different tops; the first one giving much more chest protection. Legolas has some very elegant and soft flowing line details, especially on the first one. Except for his leafmaille armor, Legolas’s clothing is much less shadowy and spiky than Tauriel’s; even though this is his patrol outfit.

With Legolas my philosophy had been to avoid straight lines wherever possible. Rather than cut across him, his belt ran off the line of his hips and dipped down at the front. Weta Workshop’s Kate Venables of the leather department came up with the elegant, embossed leather tracery that threaded its way down the belt. Kate’s design was simple, but very beautiful, and wonderfully sculptural. Like his tunic, the boots Legolas wore were also deerskin, made with a curved lace-up that climbed the muscle of his leg. - DoS Cloaks & Daggers; Lesley Burkes-Harding, Costume Designer, Legolas and Tauriel, pg 182

We clearly see Legolas’s mithril shirt, and I really want to know how Thranduil got a hold of it! I haven’t come up with a satisfactory headcanon yet.

Legolas is wearing eyeliner here, unlike in the LotR films; and he is the only male elf to do so in all six films.

Simple, soft, and elegant really sums up Legolas’s designs. His colors are also much more muted than Tauriel’s. He and Tauriel have two very different personalities, and that is shown so well through their differing aesthetics.

Now, Thranduil!

As with everything to do with Thranduil, the design of his staff included thorn and stag-horn elements. Compared to the imagery in Rivendell there was more vigour in the Woodland Realm, with shapes that were stronger and slightly more ambiguous. It was beautiful, Elven design, but with an element of threat to it as well. - DoS Art & Design; Alan Lee, Concept Art Director, pg 87

There is a lot more meaning behind Thranduil’s antler motif.

That really sprang from this little detail in the story where just after they’ve crossed the stream, a stag appears. And the implication is that stag is a sacred animal to the elves. 
One of the traditional features of old folklore is that the elves were associated with the white deer. It’s very much an association with the otherworld. And if you interact with it you may stray over into its world. And that’s really perilous. 

We find it in the stories of King Arthur, where they’re at a feast. The doors are open and a stag runs right through the hall. And out the other side, disappears. It’s kind of a portent of an adventure.  

You see the white stag or the white doe and naturally you think, ‘that’s really strange. I’ve got to chase that’ but actually, that may be a trap.  

Thorin takes a shot at it, he’s definitely kind of violated a taboo. It seemed that this was going to be some kind of titanic or replematic(?) figure for Thranduil. - starts 0:21, source

And:

Leave it to the mighty elven king of the Woodland realm to enter battle in style - not on some robust destrier, but on an enormous, graceful elk. Although King Thranduil’s mount is not specified in the book, the film adaptions use a giant elk as the elven king’s war steed. The elk can be seen in the prologue of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and during The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies as Thranduil’s method of transportation. Throughout the final battle, the elk aided in fighting off the orcs by kicking, and using its huge antlers to crush and fling the enemy.  

Incredibly, this massive elk existed outside of Middle-earth. In fact, despite its common name (Irish elk), it was not actually an elk, but was the largest species of deer to have ever lived. Standing at 2.1m (7ft) at the shoulder, weighing around 680kg (1500lbs), and having an antler spread of up to 3.9m (13ft), the Megaloceros giganteus was a formidable herbivore. 

[cut] 

When it came to selecting a war mount, Thranduil chose wisely. Other than the ability to crush orcs, those powerful, scooping antlers would have been an excellent set of weapons in defense against predators as well. If that did not work, the skeleton of the Irish elk indicates that the animal was an endurance runner. Therefore, it could out pace even the swiftest carnivores. (source)

Thranduil rides an Irish Elk, and his throne has it’s antlers carved around it. But the amazing thing about the symbolism is that it isn’t an elk, it’s a deer. Even though it’s not a white one, I think the symbolism still fits. Especially since Thorin also tries and fails to shoot the white stag.

Given it was to be some kind of organic resin, I put swirls of colour and flecks of reflective shellac into the urethane so that it caught the light and had the kind of depth and natural variation that real amber has. I added a shaft sculpted to look like wood to the amber and metal head along with the small metal cage element to the bottom to compete the full hero staff. - DoS Cloaks & Daggers; John Harvey, Prop Maker, pg 189

Thranduil’s staff not only continues his thorn and stag-horn designs, but also the use of amber.

Thranduil needed a costume for his visit to Erebor and Philippa Boyens left us with the words starlight and moonlight to consider. To me that suggested a pewter silver shimmer or perhaps some slightly grey-mauve tones, but overall, a coolness, which is Thranduil through and through. I wanted to achieve an iridescent quality in the garment and to continue those long, lean lines of his hair down his costume so that hair and clothing became almost one – icy, simple and iconic. He has long lines that accentuate his leanness, tapering to points in his sleeves, collar and shoulders. 

The crown that had been made was very spiky and I wanted to ensure that that feeling of sharpness carried though into the costume as well. That barbed beauty is such a part of Thranduil’s character. 

The color and texture of the costume were evocative of silver birch, but the overall effect we were looking for was one of coldness, of winter. Other scenes in which we saw Thranduil in Mirkwood had an autumnal palette, but this was a different time and, in my mind, a different season. 

We found a fabric that had a certain intertwining quality. Mirkwood is a dense, bewildering and unforgiving place, full of twisting vines and tangled branches, with thorny organic forms. Combined with elegant brocade fabrics, that we cut up and put back together, this felt very appropriate to Thranduil. Breaking them up and recombining them made them feel more abstract, angular and organic, almost like bark. - DoS Art & Design; Bob Buck, Costume Designer, pg 86 

The inspiration for the costume Thranduil wore in the An Unexpected Journey prologue came from Philippa Boyen’s words 'starlight, moonlight.’ To reflect these thoughts we used luminescent velvets and metallic brocades which were over-dyed to add depth and the effect of light coming out of dark. The rich velvet over-tunic had a woven metallic lace overlay which resembled the skeleton of a leaf, a metaphor for the immortal king’s great age. A sashed belt was fastened around his waist with a silver buckle of barbed vines that evoked the danger of the wild wood and its people. - DoS Cloaks & Daggers; Bob Buck, Costume Designer, pg 190

If you look closely you can see that in the v of his belt is a gem surrounded by the same design as his brooch. He has a train, but it is not very long.

I remembered a portrait of the French King Louis XIV in which he was imposingly draped in ermine. I wanted to recreate that same level of opulence, volume and command for Thranduil so we used a huge drape of mottled print linen lined with a shot metallic lurex which Lee practiced moving with to great effect. - DoS Cloaks & Daggers; Ann Maskrey, Costume Designer, pg 191 

It has a long and trailing cape and is lined with a metallic orange. His clothes are beautiful and are all either metallic in some way or a deep, shiny black. Atop this he has a stunning crown with protruding barbs. - DoS Cloaks & Daggers; Le Pace, Actor, Thranduil, pg 191 

Thranduil had lots of interesting stones in his jewelry. We used everything from agate to onyx, and lots of amethyst, introducing some purple to his palette. Sophie Lewis-Smith created a number of his pieces. The twiggy look was her work and was very appropriate for him. It was a little bit wild and scary, but still very beautiful. - DoS Cloaks & Daggers; Dallas Poll, Costume Jeweller, pg 192

Thranduil again wears the same brooch and the same four rings. He also has a high open collar and a v cut going down his chest, just like before. It’s a different pattern, but this coat also has the appearance of bark interspersed with leaves. It has a very long train. His boots stop just below the knee.

I don’t have anything to say about the iconic Woodland crown, except that it’s amazing and matches the rest of his designs perfectly.

Instead of having his giant cape(?) draped over his throne, Thranduil now has it wrapped around him. The dark and light spots and pattern make it look like a different type of tree bark.

For the scene in which Thranduil beheads the Orc, Narzug, we needed a costume that was as strong looking as that which he wore in his first throne-room scene, but more cruel and severe. Choosing darker colors made sense, and we sculpted and cast jewelry and fastening for his costumes that echoed the gnarled, suffocating branches and roots of the forest. The closures on his coats were like the barbs of thorny plants and some of his rings like entwined ivy, all beautiful but cruel and unsettling at the same time. - DoS Cloaks & Daggers; Ann Maskrey, Costume Designer, pg 193

I. Want. This. Robe!!!

Ahem. Anyway, enough fangirling from me. 

The design and cut of this coat is almost exactly the same as the one before, only this one stops just below Thranduil’s knees. The pattern is much more simple, but still looks like a form of bark. The only change in his jewelry is that he’s wearing the brooch with the dark stone. He’s also wearing a different pair of boots, and these have a lip that comes over his knee. Last but certainly not least is his gorgeous robe. The rich color contrasts wonderfully with the dark metallic of his coat, and I am in love with the leaf cutouts. It has a long train.

This coat looks exactly the same as the last one, except its closures are silver. Thranduil is wearing the same brooch and his usual rings when in the tent. He has a new robe, which is silver with a dark red lining. The pattern on it looks like leaves and berries, and it has a long train. This is only the second time he has worn a belt. His circlet is silver and looks like entwined thorns, and in the center is a single starlight gem.

When Thranduil rides into Dale, he is only wearing some of his armor.

Thranduil was the King of the Elves. He had to look striking when he went to war, and his cape for The Battle of the Five Armies was probably my favorite fabrication project. It was made out of silvery leather leaves and velvet. [cut] The velvet on that cloak was some of the most beautiful I had ever worked with. We wanted to put an ombré effect on it, so it would fade from dark to light across its length. 

[cut] I dyed a length of velvet silver with a deep charcoal coming in from the bottom, dried it and took it to Bob. We put it on a mannequin and the effect was stunning. It was like molten metal! It had an incredible quality and we knew at that moment that it was going to be an exquisite costume. - BotFA The Art of War; Paula Collier, Textile Artist & Dyer, pg 95

I love how Thranduil’s armor is shaped like leaves on his shoulders, and that it then gives way to leaf cut outs attached to his cloak. Once again his cloak is silver with a dark red lining.

The rest of Thranduil’s armor is equally beautiful, with all of the swirling lines. The general shape of his breastplate is the same as the Solders’, so their’s must have been styled after his.

I liked the conceptual purity of an entire sword that was crafted from a single piece of metal, handle and all, a severity and simplicity that befit Thranduil. Cut-through and filigree wove like vines along the handle, offering grip, and subtracting weight from the blade itself. Weta Workshop Swordsmith Peter Lyon’s finished prop was an exceptional piece of work. - DoS Art & Design; Daniel Falconer, Weta Workshop Designer, pg 87 

As proud as I was of how beautiful Orcrist turned out, Thranduil’s sword trumped even that amazing weapon as the most exquisite blade I think we have made for these films. Weta Workshop designer Daniel Falconer’s design offered a clinical killing tool for the king of the Woodland Realm to wield in battle, but it also presented the most significant challenge to our sword-makers of any of the thousands of blades we have made over the years. It is testament to the skill of our team that you would never know this when looking at photographs of this sublimely elegant sword in its final form, but look closely and you will appreciate the weight-saving hollow-ground hilt, perforations through the blade and complex, flowing forms that seamlessly link handle and blade in one unbroken icicle of steel, and that is difficult to make! Always keen to rise to the challenge, Jordan Thompson, Peter Lyon and the remainder of the team involved in producing this weapon accomplished what might have seemed impossible, and the final sword is manifest example of refined elegance made real. - DoS Cloaks & Daggers; Richard Taylor, Weta Workshop Design and Special Effects Supervisor, pg 189

Because of how challenging Thranduil’s swords were to make, I headcanon that they were made for him in Doriath.

What have we learned about Thranduil? He loves metallic colors, detailed patterns, long trains, and lots of jewelry. His designs are much more elaborate than Legolas or Tauriel’s. However, Thranduil and Tauriel have a few very interesting similarities - they both have high collars and the v design going down their chests. The closest Legolas comes to a v design is with his second patrol top, but there are only two lines and they are much more understated. 

We also never see Legolas wearing anything with a starlight gem, or indeed any jewelry at all. Whereas both Tauriel’s necklace and Thranduil’s circlet are silver thorns with a starlight gem in the middle.

I want to end with a little gem regarding Thranduil that I’ve only once seen someone talk about!

One thing that we can discern about Thranduil from the set dressing items I created for him, it that he is into orchids. I created a couple of book spreads for him featuring illustrations and writings concerning these flowers, which, it would appear, are a hobby of his. - DoS Cloaks & Daggers; Daniel Reeve, Graphic Artist, pg 196

I just love the fact that Thranduil has a soft and tranquil hobby he can do to relax! After all, he’s a single dad with two stubborn kids and a kingdom!

~*~

I hope this supplemental essay has helped expand and deepen your understanding of our three beloveds. I am constantly blown away by the phenomenal amount of depth and nuance put not only into the characterizations, but also the visuals. Also, thank you for giving your time to my headcanons.

SaveSave