Glorfindel upon the other side: one of Tolkien's most glorious glimpses in The Lord of the Rings
- Miriam Ellis
- May 11
- 2 min read
It is said that Galadriel is the most powerful elf left in Middle-earth in the late Third Age, but I would suggest that Glorfindel is the bearer of the most sub-created holiness. He is the one whom J.R.R. Tolkien called "almost angelic"; a being so magnificent that, after he sacrifices himself to enable the escape of many from the fall of Gondolin, he is re-embodied and sent back to these shores.
He shows us elves at their very best. He is a healer whose very hand relieves pain. He is a member of the Rivendell community, where ancient lore is respected. He is so fearless and good that evil flees before his face. He is like a living eucatastrophe, dropping the green beryl on the Last Bridge as a token of hope and riding to the rescue of the hobbits and Aragorn.
It is, perhaps, one of the most spiritually uplifting and significant passages in The Lord of the Rings when a beleagured Frodo begins losing consciousness on the banks of the roaring Bruinen whilst his fearsome foes are engulfed by waves capped with visions of horses and riders and, just for a moment, the little hobbit glimpses Glorfindel before everything fades.
He sees the Elf-lord, not just on the other side of the river, but as he appears "upon the other side", as Gandalf later explains to a convalescing Frodo. Frodo's Road is so dark and difficult, but this is one of the best lights Eru seems to have places along his way, and the very idea of it fills me with awe. Glimpses of Valinorean glory are few and far between in the Shire, or anywhere else in Middle-earth at the close of the Third Age. The appearance of Glorfindel is something very special, indeed.
Some of my fellow Tolkien readers may find that my portrayal of Glorfindel looking with majestic compassion at Frodo through the curl of the great wave calls to mind the Professor's Atlantean nightmare, which he shared with his son, Michael. Tolkien's full exploration of such catastrophe in "The Downfall of Númenor" is certainly dreadfully epic, but here, the waters of Ulmo tell a different tale, washing away evil, alone.
I have treated the power of the water with great respect, and it is filled with the light of Glorfindel and his burning brand, bespeaking hope and rescue. My own hope is that you will feel the promise held in this painting. Please, spend a moment by the river with Frodo encountering this glimpse of glory in this video short:
