Weirwoods
History of Westeros delves deep into Heart Trees & Weirwoods. As always, we discuss their history while poring over the details to learn as much as possible. We cover everything from tree dreams to blood sacrifice, the power of stumps, Bran’s visions, the cave of the Three Eyed Crow and an assortment of items made from weirwood… and quite a bit more. It’s such a huge topic we can’t even tease it all! Part 2 of our Weirwoods series is out now, view it here.
I never knew that northmen made blood sacrifice to their heart trees.
A leaf drifted down from above, brushed his brow, and landed in the pool. It floated on the water, red, five-fingered, like a bloody hand.
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Itay says
January 29, 2014 at 11:39 pmFantastic
Jiri says
January 30, 2014 at 2:35 amFinally! Guys, I checked for it so many times already … Thank you
Brendan Thompson says
January 30, 2014 at 11:26 amThis is a great addition to your analysis. It was too long since I have been able to listen to your thoughts, theories and insights.
kris says
January 30, 2014 at 6:24 pmAwesome! Been waiting months for this. Informative and fascinating as always, cant wait for the next!
Anne says
February 1, 2014 at 6:16 pmGreat episode! Thank you.
I might have missed it but, when you mentioned items made out of weirwood, did you talk about the door in the house of the Undyings?
Azizshaya says
February 1, 2014 at 6:19 pmGreat catch! That is a particularly interesting one because of how far away Qarth is! We did not mention that, no.
Anne says
February 1, 2014 at 7:10 pmThank you for the reply 🙂
To my knowledge, there are 3 doors made out of ebony and weir wood mentioned if the books: the one in the House of Black and white (with a moon face carved in it), the one in the House of the Undying (with “strange interwoven patterns” that Dany finds beautiful but scary) and the one at the entrance of Tobho Mott’s (who comes from Qohor) shop in Kings Landing (with a hunting scene).
So my question is: what’s up with these ebony and weirwood doors in/related to Essos?
PS Sorry for the long comment
Words_Are_Wind says
February 12, 2014 at 6:10 pmWhat happens to Margaery Tyrell if she is found gulity by the faith? What are here options?
Steve DLF says
February 14, 2014 at 1:16 amHappy you guys are back! No one breaks it down with more insight than you guys!
I’m pretty convinced the sacrifice Bran witnessed through the Weirwood was the Night King getting executed and is Coldhands. The witnesses are all first men wearing furs and chainmail, and the woman is carrying a bronze sickle. And the vision suddenly switches perspective……. “but as the life flowed out of him in a red tide, Brandon Stark could taste the blood”.
GRRM provides a double entendre where the reader may interpret it as Bran can taste the blood OR it is the man getting executed, Brandon Stark, who tastes the blood. From Old Nan’s stories the Night’s King was potentially a Brandon Stark and was executed by his brother, who at the time was king of the North and also could’ve been the man who forced Brandon Stark on his knees to get sacrificed.
Knowing what we know from Coldhands is he is obviously killed long ago and that he also wears chainmail under heavy furs. One last clue was in Bran I chapter in ADoD, GRRM dropped his first double entendre when Coldhands seems to be introducing himself when Bran calls him “A monster”. which is then followed up with a direct statement to Bran “your monster, Brandon Stark.” Is he introducing himself or is he saying that he is Brans monster…..hmmmmm depends on how you want to interpret that punctuation.
The sacrifice may also explain why Coldhands never reveals his neck or face and keeps it hidden by cloth in order to hide the massive gash on his neck.
Can’t wait for the next podcast! Thanks for the hours of entertainment and inspriring me to reread the series.
Tim says
August 3, 2014 at 11:17 amYou were right to second guess that statement about weirwood faces moving up the tree over thousands of years – trees don’t work like that. They grow thicker everywhere, but the only vertical growth is at the tips of the branches and roots. Awesome podcast though – really insightful!
Lincoln Noronha says
September 12, 2014 at 2:12 pmHey guys, put up a sponsored link to buy the World of Ice and Fire. I am gonna buy it, and want the chance to go through you guys, so you get a small cut.
Azizshaya says
October 5, 2014 at 11:16 amWe actually can’t, maybe it will change once it is officially out, but at the moment, Amazon will not let us add it. You can follow the link for another item and purchase it that way, though.
elsmith94 says
April 18, 2016 at 12:19 pmHaving finally discovered podcasts and, more specifically, you guys ridiculously late, I’ve been meandering through all of your old podcasts, and I listened to this one last week. I am simultaneously embarking on (yet another) series re-read and came upon this little quote in GoT from Jon IX (as he’s decided to desert the NW,and is currently hiding from Halder, Pyp, Grenn etc.):
“Out of the corner of his eye, Jon glimpsed a pale shape moving through the trees. Leaves rustled, and Ghost came bounding out of the shadows, so suddenly that Jon’s mare started and gave a whinny.”
Interesting that the leaves rustle around Ghost, who has been compared to weirwoods countless times – something I wouldn’t have picked up on without you guys, so thanks! Love your work!