The fate of the Silmarils turned tragic when the Dark Lord Morgoth and the great spider Ungoliant destroyed the Two Trees, plunging the world into darkness [4]. Morgoth slew Fëanor’s father, King Finwë, and stole the jewels, fleeing to his stronghold of Thangorodrim in Middle-earth where he set them in his Iron Crown [2, 12].
: They embodied the concepts of pure, untainted light, beauty, and truth, yet their perfection also incited dangerous possessiveness in their creator [4, 10]. The Darkening of Valinor and the Oath silmaril
Crafted in the "Noon of Valinor," the Silmarils were made from a crystalline substance called silima , which only Fëanor knew how to forge [11]. Inside these crystals, he captured the blended light of the Two Trees —Telperion and Laurelin—the original sources of light for the world before the Sun and Moon [4, 5]. The fate of the Silmarils turned tragic when
: After the final defeat of Morgoth, the remaining two jewels were recovered but then stolen by Fëanor’s surviving sons, Maedhros and Maglor [15]. However, their deeds had made them unworthy; the jewel burned Maedhros’s hand in such agony that he cast himself and the Silmaril into a fiery chasm of the Earth [15]. The Darkening of Valinor and the Oath Crafted
Are you interested in a deeper dive into the fought over these jewels, or Silmaril: final design and on-sky performance
: Beren and Lúthien managed to cut one jewel from Morgoth's crown [16]. It was eventually borne by Eärendil the Mariner , who sailed to the West to beg the Valar for aid [18]. It now shines in the sky as the Morning and Evening Star, a symbol of hope to all in Middle-earth [18].