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 3 of our Weirwoods series is out now, view it here.
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.
The weirwood’s bark was white as bone, its leaves dark red, like a thousand bloodstained hands. A face had been carved in the trunk of the great tree, its features long and melancholy, the deep-cut eyes red with dried sap and strangely watchful. They were old, those eyes; older than Winterfell itself. They had seen Brandon the Builder set the first stone, if the tales were true; they had watched the castle’s granite walls rise around them. It was said that the children of the forest had carved the faces in the trees during the dawn centuries before the coming of the First Men across the narrow sea.
I never knew that northmen made blood sacrifice to their heart trees.
Fantastic
Finally! Guys, I checked for it so many times already … Thank you
This is a great addition to your analysis. It was too long since I have been able to listen to your thoughts, theories and insights.
Awesome! Been waiting months for this. Informative and fascinating as always, cant wait for the next!
Great 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?
Great catch! That is a particularly interesting one because of how far away Qarth is! We did not mention that, no.
Thank 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
What happens to Margaery Tyrell if she is found gulity by the faith? What are here options?
Happy 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.
You 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!
Hey 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.
We 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.
Having 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!