Posted: December 15, 1999 at 23:18:22: by Michael Martinez
: As they came to the gates Cirdan the Shipwright came forth to
: greet them. Very tall he was, and his beard was long, and he
: was grey and old....The only other bearded elf on record is Beleg in the painting "Taur-nu-Fuin", which depicts the scene where he finds Gwindor sleeping at the root of a tree. But this painting predates THE LORD OF THE RINGS. On the other hand, the only place where Tolkien spoke of the beardlessness of Elves was in a very late essay (written in the last year or two of his life), and it's doubtful he would have retained it once he checked "published" works, but many people still cite this essay as "proof" that Elves were supposed to be beardless. Legolas made no mention of beardlessness when he met Imrahil and recognized the latter's Elvish descent.
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