Faramir's and Denethor's swords

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Hay guys, I made this tread so we could gather as much photos and information of the above named swords from LOTR as possible.

As Guthwine is finally on his way from being a dream to becoming reality, I thought that it would be great to have some kind of base material (photos, details) for this two swords for some future projects :) and to have historical record on this forum about these unfairly neglected swords :)

Also, I would like to know what do you think about these swords. Do you like the designs? Would you like to have either of the 2 in your collections?
"Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift - that's why they call it the present."

Re: Faramir's and Denethor's swords

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Not a huge fan of Faramir's sword for some reason. It just seems plain and clunky to me. Love Denethor's though.

Wasn't there a Gondor sword that that had the pommel piece fashioned to resemble Minas Tirith, with concentric circles rising higher toward the bottom (tip of the pommel)? I remember seeing the photos long ago and for some reason that stuck in my mind as Faramir's sword but maybe it was a common Gondor soldier's sword? Anyone remember what I'm referring to? :huh:
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Re: Faramir's and Denethor's swords

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It was the standard issue Gondor infantry sword Val. It had an unfullered blade and a curved crossguard similar to that of Denethor's. The scabbard also had the same design just below the throat. Sorry for the bad quality image.
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"So many vows...they make you swear and swear. Defend the king. Obey the king. Keep his secrets. Do his bidding. Your life for his. But obey your father. Love your sister. Protect the innocent. Defend the weak. Respect the gods. Obey the laws.
It's too much. No matter what you do, you're forsaking one vow or the other.”

Re: Faramir's and Denethor's swords

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It seems that I'm the only one here who likes Faramir's sword :) Oh well... At least there are many photos of it and hopefully, with some help, I would be able to make this sword myself. Fittings are no problem, wooden grip covered with leather also. The only problem is the blade because I don't have the tools required.

But regarding Denethor's sword, I agree with you all! It is more beautiful and rich in details as far as it can be seen from those poor photos I have :( I would love to see some better ones...

Nerdanel, thanks for the photos of Boromir's dagger/knife. It really looks nice. LOTR and it's glory! Huge amounts of details, designs done professionally but also with love. Many of the weapons we admire are barely visible in the movies with only few seconds of screen time, yet they are done with utmost attention. :bowing:
"Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift - that's why they call it the present."

Re: Faramir's and Denethor's swords

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[quote=""EagleFriend""]It seems that I'm the only one here who likes Faramir's sword :) :[/quote]

I like Faramir's sword as well EF :) But I like Denethor's a lot more :)

I think we have asked Kit before about photos, and I believe he told us that they never received the prop because they were told he may not even use it in the film. I'm sure he'll correct me if I'm wrong though.
"All those moments will be lost, in time... like tears, in the rain..."

Re: Faramir's and Denethor's swords

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I think I did have that sword on my prop request list, then we were told it would never be seen outside the scabbard and nixed it. Beautiful sword though.

[quote=""Nerdanel""]I can't tell if this is a screen used prop or just a fan interpretation. I think this is close to the actually sheath though:

Image


And a cameo screenshot of Boromir's dagger ;)
[/quote]
That's the actual hero prop from the production prop master photos. The one I had was a stunt prop cast from it, with an aluminum blade.
Last edited by Nasnandos on Fri Jan 24, 2014 8:39 am, edited 1 time in total.
KRDS

Re: Faramir's and Denethor's swords

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Beautiful dagger, another excellent prop I'm sorry we missed out on. :(

I wonder at what point in the movies Denethor would have drawn that sword? It seems like it was destined to remain in it's scabbard no matter what. I don't recall which scenes in Minas Tirith he is wearing it in though it would make sense that he would at least be armed once the hosts of Mordor lay siege to the city. He also might have been wearing it in the EE scene for TT when he is in Osgiliath to congratulate Boromir on taking the city. I don't think the shield was ever seen and wonder why that prop was even made, unless PJ had a vague thought about sending Denethor into battle at some point?!? :huh:
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Re: Faramir's and Denethor's swords

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[quote=""Valkrist""]Beautiful dagger, another excellent prop I'm sorry we missed out on. :(

I wonder at what point in the movies Denethor would have drawn that sword? It seems like it was destined to remain in it's scabbard no matter what. I don't recall which scenes in Minas Tirith he is wearing it in though it would make sense that he would at least be armed once the hosts of Mordor lay siege to the city. He also might have been wearing it in the EE scene for TT when he is in Osgiliath to congratulate Boromir on taking the city. I don't think the shield was ever seen and wonder why that prop was even made, unless PJ had a vague thought about sending Denethor into battle at some point?!? :huh: [/quote]

Did he ever draw it? I don't remember ever seeing the blade in the films, but it was only supposed to be part of his costume. He was wearing it in practically every scene in ROTK, right up to his fiery end. The lead actors all got complete costumes and weapons that had way more detail than necessary. For example - there was embossed leather inside Gimli's helm that no one would ever see, but the actor knew it was there. From what I remember someone saying in the DVD supplements, they went beyond what would be seen on screen for the actors, to make everything feel more real for them about their characters.
KRDS

Re: Faramir's and Denethor's swords

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Another example from the bonus dvd's - was they showed the level of detail inside Theoden's armor. Something that would never be seen on camera...but if i remember correctly, Bernard Hill even commented on how it made him feel like royalty!

That prop auction from a month or two back - Faramir's sword had for more interest (and a much higher closing bid) than Theoden's...or even Boromir's! I don't recall any of Denethor's prop's up for auction though...
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Re: Faramir's and Denethor's swords

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[quote=""Nasnandos""]Did he ever draw it? I don't remember ever seeing the blade in the films, but it was only supposed to be part of his costume.[/quote]

No, I don't believe he did, and that's not what I meant. I was simply wondering aloud under what circumstances would he ever have drawn that sword if he had, and then cited the possible scenarios: during the celebration at Osgiliath (still a potentially dangerous environment,) and during the siege of Minas Tirith (only a fool would have gone about unarmed!)

Just really wondering where they put that shield though. I don't think it was in any scene. I think it might have been made for a scene where they would have shown Denethor's chambers, with the shield and possibly armour mounted somewhere, but that's just pure speculation.
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Re: Faramir's and Denethor's swords

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[quote=""Lindir""]I like Faramir's sword as well EF. But I like Denethor's a lot more [/quote]
:thumbs_up
[quote=""BladeCollector""]I like Faramir's sword, I dont really care for the pommel too terribly much, but overall I like it, looks like it could be a cousin of Strider's Ranger sword[/quote]
My thoughts exactly :) Aragorn, Dunedain ranger and Faramir, Ithilien ranger.

Great! Now there are 3 of us liking Faramir's sword :D
My favorite race/culture has always been Human (Numenor,Arnor,Gondor,Rohan and Dale) and I always preferred medieval and antic European sword look...never liked much katanas and sabers (except light sabers of course B)) so every human sword from LOTR is precious to me :)
Also, I think that Faramir and Denethor are important characters in the book. Not as important as some others but still... Faramir is known for not taking the one ring for himself although he had the chance. And Denethor was wise, just and of strong personality before his wife died and he begun frequently using the Minas Tirith Palantir...Still, his mental strength was solid enough to withstand Sauron's influence trough Palantir for some time.
"Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift - that's why they call it the present."

Re: Faramir's and Denethor's swords

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[quote=""Valkrist""]
Just really wondering where they put that shield though. I don't think it was in any scene. I think it might have been made for a scene where they would have shown Denethor's chambers, with the shield and possibly armour mounted somewhere, but that's just pure speculation.[/quote]

That shield was never used in ROTK. There may have been a cut scene or a chamber set we never saw in Minas Tirith where Denethor's armor was kept. I have a vague memory of reading somewhere or someone from New Line telling me it was never intended to be used though. Denethor's shield for some reason stands out as one of those. My memory on some of that stuff is in a fog now, but I recall being told they were just designing and building character specific props, even when there were no scenes in the scripts that required them - just in case.
KRDS
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