The Rings of Power: What's the Deal With Mithril in The Lord of the Rings Series?

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power has brought the rare and powerful metal called mithril into its story over the past couple of episodes. As light as it is strong, mithril is the material used to make the shirt that Bilbo gives to Frodo in The Lord of the Rings, which saves Frodo's life during the battle with the cave troll in The Fellowship of the Ring. It's appropriate since that fight takes place in the mines of Moria, the former location of the dwarven kingdom of Khazad-dûm, where mithril was discovered and mined until its fall. 

The Rings of Power is adding some new details to Mithril's mythology. Let's break down everything you need to know about mithril in Middle-earth, and how The Rings of Power is adding to the legend.

What is mithril?

Mithril is a silvery metal. It is both lighter and stronger than any other metal, and thus makes the best armor. However, it is also rare. The dwarves of Khazad-dûm discovered it and mined deeply for it. Here's how Gandalf the Grey described mithril's worth to the Fellowship of the Ring while they passed through Khazad-dûm's ruins in the mines of Moria:

"The wealth of Moria was not in gold or jewels, the toys of the Dwarves; nor in iron, their servant... Its worth was ten times that of gold, and now it is beyond price; for little is left above ground, and even the Orcs dare not delve here for it."'... '"Mithril! All folk desired it. It could be beaten like copper, and polished like glass; and the Dwarves could make of it a metal, light and yet harder than tempered steel. Its beauty was like to that of common silver, but the beauty of Mithril did not tarnish or grow dim."

Mithril, like many elements of J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-earth, has become an iconic element of fantasy and made its way into other works of the genre, particularly fantasy games. It has been a material that can be used to craft weapons and armor in Dungeons & Dragons and EverQuest, and mythril armor can be found in many Final Fantasy games, to give just a few examples.

Where did mithril come from?

Here's where The Rings of Power begins making additions to the mythology. Tolkien gave no special origin to mithril, only noting that the dwarves of Khazad-dûm were the first to discover it and the only ones to mine it. The Rings of Power adds a new legend.

In The Rings of Power's fifth episode, Elrond recites The Song of the Roots of Hithaeglir, a story created for the series. Hithaeglir is said to be a beautiful tree rumored to hide one of the missing Silmarils, the gems that the dark lord Morgoth went to war with all of creation to possess. The song recounts a battle between a brave elven warrior and a terrible balrog over the tree.

The clash of light a dark led to a storm, and lightning struck the tree. The strike sent the light of Silmaril through the tree's roots, down deep into the Misty Mountains, creating veins of mithril, which lay there undiscovered until the dwarves (Disa, specifically) found it.

Why do the elves want mithril?

We know from Tolkien's writing that the elves traded with the dwarves for mithril. It was believed that they used it for clothing and jewelry and other decorative measures, but The Rings of Power posits another possible reason.

Gil-galad tells Elrond that the light of the Eldar is fading. The Eldar are the elves who began the Great Journey to Aman in the west. There's is the light of Valinor, derived from living in the glow of the Two Trees of Valinor in Aman. However, since the Eldar left Aman for Middle-earth, their light is now fading.

The elves now face a choice between returning west to Aman or becoming soulless husks. However, the discovery of mithril changes the equation. Because of the involvement of a Silmaril in mithril's creation, the metal contains the light of the Valar. Gil-galad believes that exposure to mithril can restore the Eldar's light, allowing them to remain in Middle-earth.

What is mithril's connection to The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings?

There are two ways that mithril factors into the stories of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. The first is Bilbo Baggins' mithril shirt. Found in Smaug's dragon hoard in the Lonely Mountain, Thorin Oakenshield presented the shirt to Bilbo as a gift for his service. Bilbo later gave the shirt to Frodo Baggins as Frodo embarked on his journey with the Fellowship of the Ring. The shirt saved Frodo's life during the fight in the mines of Moria.

This leads to the next connection, Moria. The Fellowship travels through the mines expecting a welcome from the dwarves of Khazad-dûm. Instead, they find a ruin overrun by orcs. The dwarves dug too deeply in their search for more mithril, releasing a balrog known as Durin's Bane. It is this balrog that Gandalf fights in the mines before plummeting to his death, only to later return as Gandalf the White.

Whether Elrond and Durin are capable of convincing the king of Khazad-dûm to supply the elves with mithril remains to be seen. Fans will see it unfold as new episodes of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power debut weekly on Thursdays on Prime Video.