# Boromir's Horn inspired by Roland?



## Aldarion (Aug 4, 2021)

I just watched this:





And it occured to me that Roland's horn is similar to Boromir's horn. Roland blew his horn too late, and the sound "echoed through the mountains and seas", which is similar to how Boromir's horn could be heard throughout Gondor.


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## 1stvermont (Aug 4, 2021)

Aldarion said:


> I just watched this:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



and its the king [aragorn] who comes and finds him. He dies while fighting a vastly numerical superior foe.



Aldarion said:


> I just watched this:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Just wondering, where is it said Boromir's horn was heard throughout gondor?


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## Aldarion (Aug 4, 2021)

1stvermont said:


> Just wondering, where is it said Boromir's horn was heard throughout gondor?


It was mentioned twice. First in TTT when Faramir talks to Frodo:


> ‘You remember well, and as one who has in truth seen him,’ said Faramir.
> ‘Then maybe you can see it in your mind’s eye: a great horn of the wild ox of the
> East, bound with silver, and written with ancient characters. That horn the eldest
> son of our house has borne for many generations; and it is said that if it be blown
> ...


And then afterwards, in RotK when Denethor talks to Pippin:


> ‘That is the horn that Boromir always wore!’ cried Pippin.
> ‘Verily,’ said Denethor. ‘And in my turn I bore it, and so did each eldest son of
> our house, far back into the vanished years before the failing of the kings, since
> Vorondil father of Mardil hunted the wild kine of Araw in the far fields of Rhûn.
> ...


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## Squint-eyed Southerner (Aug 4, 2021)

I haven't read Roland in decades, so I'll have to find my copy for a reread. But I can't imagine it having no influence at all -- Tolkien would surely be very familiar with it. The fact that the horn was called "Oliphant" is at least suggestive. 😀

Of course, Boromir's horn -- and others -- have functions, in the fictional structure, and in the structure of the imagery. I said a bit about that here, if you want to take a look:









The "Rule of Threes" As a Structural Principle in Tolkien


I'd noticed the occurrence of groups of threes in a casual way, over the years, but a couple of things caused me to take a closer look. One was Douglas Anderson's note on Bilbo's "third time pays for all" in The Annotated Hobbit, where he says it is a Medieval proverb, and gives a quote from a...




www.thetolkienforum.com


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## Aldarion (Aug 4, 2021)

Squint-eyed Southerner said:


> I haven't read Roland in decades, so I'll have to find my copy for a reread. But I can't imagine it having no influence at all -- Tolkien would surely be very familiar with it. The fact that the horn was called "Oliphant" is at least suggestive. 😀
> 
> Of course, Boromir's horn -- and others -- have functions, in the fictional structure, and in the structure of the imagery. I said a bit about that here, if you want to take a look:
> 
> ...


Excellent read, thank you!


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