: No, Thranduil took it from him and only returned it after the battle. He did use it in the Misty Mountains.

oops - I forgot that one...

: : As to physically wielding it - I don't see a problem either, I picture the dwarfs, though short, as having human sized hands so the hilt wouldn't be a problem, as to the length, one needs only to look at those god-awful two-handed claymores the Scotties used to fight with, not to mention the flamberge carried by German mercenaries which were commonly over 5 feet long, to know that sometimes longer is better...

: Right. I have always pictured both Glamdring and Orcrist as similar to these weapons-5 to 6 feet long. (Remember, Noldor were very tall.) My problem is not with physical strength, but with height. Obvoiusly, my conception of the weapons could be off. Were they described in The Hobbit?

Well, what I meant was Orcrist could have been a regular-sized sword for an ELF, but to a dwarf, it could have been used as one of those two-handed jobs... so I was factoring in the height problem.

: : I too wonder how the orcs recognized the sword though... it would have to be from the runes, which would mean grunt-level orcs are rune-literate, unless the legend of the sword had been passed down with such a meticulous description (hard to imagine that quality among orcs) that it was burned into their minds - perhaps used in bedtime stories to frightne orclets?

: Possibly deserters from Beleriand (as I stated elsewhere) or perhaps they were recognized by the glow. Wasn't it physically painful for orcs to look at the swords?

Well they would have to be awfully OLD deserters! (Don't even open the can of worms about if orcs natural lifespans were like elves....)

: : I also wonder about their glowing when enemies were near, I mean what was it that set them off? the smell?

: Best guess, they could "sense" malice.

I don't think so, I'm sure Thorin was feeling some malice himself! heh heh