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[madrar]

Warning: this interpretation depends heavily on triple threat theory and the implication that there are seven members of the elvish Panthon, not nine.  If that's a no-go for you, feel free to skip!

 

Dirthamen-Dumat, the "Tevinter" Bas Relief Mosaics, and the Limitations of Dwarven Perspective

 

To be blunt, getting a dwarven perspective would be a lot more useful if Gatsi were better at discerning pointy ears.  Given the mosaics' apparent subject matter and the aforementioned obvious pointy ears, identifying their origin as Tevinter seems very unlikely.  They are instead elven, looted and in some cases outright appropriated by the Imperium in the aftermath of the Elvhenan civil war.  

 

My basic premise is that the series as a group tells a complete story: specifically, the story of an ancient rebellion.  There are, unfortunately, two plausible parallel historic interpretations, reflecting the fundamental tug-of-war identity crisis behind Dumat, whose history is tightly tied to these mosaics.  I’ll present both for completeness’ sake: the tinfoil version (crazy but fairly firmly supported) and the saran wrap version (weaker in shape and likely a transparent attempt by BW to lead theory astray).  

 

Tin Foil Theory: The mosaics depict the failed rebellion of Falon’Din/Dirthamen.  The series follows his trajectory from attempted rebellion through its suppression / counter-attack led by Mythal to his final disfigurement and connection to the cult of “The Thing in the Dark” eventually adopted by Tevinter as the Cult of Dumat.  This will be an unpalatable perspective for many who take the strongly negative representation of events in the mosaics as historic truth- but as I’ll get to in a moment, that itself is a core fallacy that should be rejected.

 

Seran Wrap Theory: The mosaics depict the successful rebellion that ended with the fall of Arlathan, making the central figure Elgar’nan.  Again, while this parallel theory is plausible in its broadest strokes, it suffers from a number of fundamental weaknesses.  The first and simplest being the creation of the mosaics themselves.  They would necessarily have been crafted in the wake of the events they depict, which strongly suggests that the prevailing side in the rebellion depicted was Order.  It’s hard to imagine the chaotic civil war that followed the fall of Arlathan being conducive to the creation of elaborate historic bas relief murals. 

 

Second, the impulse to attribute the mosaics' decidedly negative portrayal of their subject as a representation of Elgar’nan is an easy trap to fall into, and should be resisted.  Solas’ character is desperately sympathetic, and remains so regardless of whether these mosaics depict his or Elgar’nan’s fall.  As Bioware constantly reminds us, there are two sides to every story: all lore and art we encounter in game is colored by the perspective and bias of the society in which it was made.  The losers of conflicts rarely have the luxury of writing history books or recording their side of the story in art.  Their perspective and objectives can only be read between the lines- inferred by accounting for the bias inherent in what the winners choose to present to the world and using that to extrapolate backwards.  Again, I want to stress the idea that these mosaics are historical events as the winning side would have them remembered, not necessarily as they truly were.

 

Ok!  That said, let’s dig in. 

 

Freed Are Slaves

 

 

Gatsi's Codex: 

Spoiler

I think this one is called "Freed Are Slaves," which is exactly the kind of "saying words but meaning different things" I expect from a Tevinter. There's lies in the carving, too, but I'll come back to that.

 

Subject aside, I like this. It's workmanlike, but in a good dwarven way. It repeats because the carver knows what she's good at, so she does it again and again. Makes me think she has more than a passing knowledge of the Stone.

 

That said, there's two sets of hands involved, one old, one new. Take this magister. He's glowing because he's fresh. Newer. Same with his trophies flanking him. Carved down from more complex figures. And the flat next to them—seems plain, doesn't it? The bottom is filled with detail, but this is left an open field? No, that's just what it is now, but there's shadows for a clever eye. So, what was here if not this handsome magister wanting his cod stuffed? Someone else instead of him and his friends, and two more figures on each side. Seven total.

 

Only the top was changed. The Qunari haven't been touched; that's old wear down there. When it was first done and hundreds of years later, yoked Qunari prisoners still fit. I don't suppose it's for the same reasons.

 

I can only say the what, not the why. I can guess that someone wanted to be a Tevinter hero and paid to have their face carved on an antiquity. I mean, that's a crime against ancestors where I'm from, but I don't expect Tevinters to obey dwarven honor. Or their own, really. They've been at war a long time, so I understand wanting to seem big. Orzammar's the same with the darkspawn, unfortunately.

Still, shame to lose the original. Not for the seven, for the carver. Good work, this.

 

Saran wrap Theory:  This is Elgar'nan and two female members of the Pantheon overlooking their horde of kossith slaves.

 

Tinfoil Theory: Gatsi’s insight that this is edited art is critical: the inference being that changes were made to an original mural that seems to have represented all seven members of the Pantheon as a united force over the enslaved kossith.  The second artist repurposed this image to tell a far different story: that of Dirthamen / Falon’Din, flanked by Ghilan’nain and Andruil, overseeing the slave rebellion they’d created.  This is represented most tellingly by what the new carver has done with the stone where other Pantheon figures used to be.  The kossith there has been edited to bear not a yoke, but a sword.  This has been transformed into the rebellion’s army of freed slaves, or at least its metaphorical representation.  

 

 

Also, as a first tiny piece of foundation toward our larger theory that this series connects Dirthamen directly to the cult of Dumat, it’s worth noting the general shape of the figures here in relation to the statuary here:

 

 

The connection is admittedly tenuous, but still a bit suggestive in the context of additional evidence we’ll examine later. 

 

Identifying Dirthamens' allies as Ghilan'nain and Andruil requires quite a bit of backtheory, so hiding that bit under spoiler tags for space:

 

Spoiler

The evidence is circumstantial (as always) but builds up quite a bit in the larger picture.  It's a combination of these three being heavily hinted at as being interconnected on a functional and personal level, added to the evidence of direct threat to Order described in Andruil's TOM codex and inferred prior bad behavior and punishment from her mural, topped off by Elgar'nans frustrating inability to give them his standard say-hello-to-the-Void "Forgotten Ones" treatment thanks to his reliance on Ghil and June as tools to maintain Order.  (Not just in terms of needing OGS worship vehicles or weapons of war- they actually make the prison-forms that allow him to effectively neutralize all other threats.)

 

Andruil's personal connection with Ghilan'nain hardly requires explanation.  Dalish myth, however, also links each goddess to Fen'Harel.  Ghilan'nain in particular seems to have shared a close relationship with Dirthamen, which is reflected in Dalish myth by Andruil's anger at his "hunting the halla without her permission", as well as Pride preventing Ghilan'nain from destroying her monstrous void creations.  The presence of Ghil's mosaics in the Temple of Dirthamen is further evidence, as are Ferelden murals depicting the Bear and the Halla Maiden in close embrace, and as we'll examine shortly, the distinctively four-limbed physical vessel Dirthamen seems to use in the age before the fall of Arlathan.

 

Andruil's direct connection to Chaos (the natural counterpart to Elgar'nan as Order) doesn't require us to accept a core OGS-temperament connection with Sera, though that certainly doesn't hurt. Her own history speaks to that subject if you read between the lines.  In her temple mural, Andruil shares a suggestive circular pattern of forehead tiles with only one other member of the Pantheon, June: a connection heavily hinted at being representative of an ancient Arlathan tranquility brand.  We're not given the details of her transgression, but we can infer it was serious enough that 1) Elgar'nan felt removing her access to magic was justified, and 2) Mythal did not intercede on her behalf.  In this light, Andruil's trips to the Void to go "hunting" take on a very different light: she is hunting for allies, not prey.  Her intimate connection with Ghil protects her from being tossed in herself, but she can't fight Order alone, and her ability to even be a thorn in Elgar'nan's side is critically hobbled at this point. (It's also easy to imagine a number of prisoners there being her secret, Red Jenny-esque compatriots- ones that did not share her immunity to Void punishment.)

 

Like Solas, Ghil's contribution to the cause (the pre-rebellion Cold War of Chaos vs Order in ancient Arlathan) lies not so much in taking direct action, as in what she prevents Order from being able to do.  Her personal relationship with Andruil and the Pantheon's reliance on her creations forms a limited but critically protective shield allowing Andruil to act.  Similiarly, Solas also prevents threats to Order from being easily or permanently neutralized, as Falon'Din's OGS domain prevents the permanent death of his allies, making their imprisonment in inaccessible monstrous forms within the Void the only viable punitive alternative.  Again, forcing Elgar'nan and the alliance of Order to rely on Ghilan'nain and June instead.

 

And for a while, this seems like Elgar'nan's best option.  Falon'Din (and other Forgotten Ones that may have joined his failed rebellion) represent a far more serious and organized threat to society's Order compared to the relatively mild irritation of Andruil's random acts of subversion.  However, this changes drastically with the emergence of red lyrium- a bright and shiny new WMD available to both sides (it was Ghil's "oops" that created it) that immediately threatens to turn the Cold War hot.  June's loyalties, already hinted at fairly strongly by his collaborative connection with Ghilan'nain in various creations including Void prison forms, becomes quite clear in the formation of Andruil's armor and weapons.  This is not something she or Ghil would have had the craft to do- it demands June's direct and willing involvement.

 

At this point Mythal sees the threat for what it is, and strikes a deal with Falon'Din/Dirthamen: she'll release him from the Void and restore him to the Pantheon in exchange for wiping knowledge of how to access the Void from Andruil's mind. (And by inference, likely that of Ghil and June as well).  He agrees, adding yet another "betrayal" to his ever-growing list, this time on the side of Chaos and the Forgotten Ones.  Solas is released as Fen'Harel- critically into Mythal's direct custody, where he immediately begins to plant seeds of doubt in the future of the Pantheon as it stands, and coax her instincts regarding the protection of the People into play.  

 

When Elgar'nan continues to experiment with red lyrium as a tool for enforcing Order (evidenced by the crafting of his new focus, as well as the petroglyph-like paintings of red lyrium slaves under the symbol of the sun painted by survivors of the ensuing civil war) Mythal can no longer ignore what he has become.  At this point, she, Solas, Andruil, Ghil, and June (perhaps others, but that's still uncertain) join forces in full rebellion against Elgar'nan's Order and the great Civil War of Elvhenan begins.  

 

Sacrifice

 

 

Gatsi's Codex: 

Spoiler

From what I can figure, this one is called "Sacrifice." I'll get back to that later. By two sculptors, and I'll get back to that sooner.

 

The sculptor's gone to the trouble of faces. I'd guess she worked from portraits, which means they were people who considered themselves important enough to need them. The scene is a classic example of "don't do this" because the sculptor hates them. It's in the way it's carved: all fast, hard edges. Uglier than they need to be, even for your average Tevinter who—and this isn't just me, mind—stands like a lanky vein of lyrium. But don't mistake that for sloppy carving. It's natural, practiced. The carver knows Tevinter. Bet she is one, and it's self-hate, probably.

 

And obvious enough. There's skulls all over, and two big and horned. That brings to mind your Qunari, and fair enough, right? Tevinters hate Qunari and have ever since they showed up. No magister wants his mouth contradicted, let alone stitched. So it makes sense they're there, even that early, I suppose.

 

Because this is probably that business of readying to invade the Fade, and giants with horns are a good motivator to sodding hurry up. Odd thing, though, is that those two are not the only Qunari in the carving. The one in the middle was sculpted with horns, and someone has gone in later and chipped them off. You can tell by the surface of it. Well, maybe you can't. But I can.

 

Seen it happen time and again. Tastes change, and the ancestor's nudes are suddenly embarrassing. So in comes a new hand to paint on some clothes. And here, judging by the marks, to cut away horns and make the victim look human. Some proud new owner didn't want to throw out the antiquity, but also didn't want people to think grandm'ma sliced up Qunari. Looks like they didn't care if she kept their heads around, though.

 

So! The carvers both wanted to show Tevinter being shits, but the later one didn't want to show what about. And that's usually to avoid blame or deny credit. Or to be an arse, I suppose.

 

Saran wrap theory: This panel portrays Elgar'nan using the kossith for the purpose he had them created: massive and undoubtedly evil blood magic rituals.

 

Tinfoil theory: This is the most difficult panel to present convincingly in terms of the series being a portrayal of Falon’Din/Dirthamen’s rebellion.  It’s obvious political propaganda and an attempt at character assassination regardless of which theory you prefer.  The panel depicts the use of blood magic, pure and simple, and hints at outright sacrifice.  In theory (creation of races link to follow) the kossith were created as an advance in terms of mortal beings with increasingly strong Will.  This would have had two effects: it granted them blood that would have been a relatively potent source of power, and also made individuals of that race much more difficult to externally control or subdue. Which objective was the original impetus for their creation depends on who we believe to have motivated their creation, but let’s ignore that debate for now.  

 

For our purposes, even assuming that the panel is an attempt to vilify the rebellion and by extension Dirthamen / Falon’Din, we’re forced to infer at least some degree of morally dubious action in the furthering of its objectives.  It was almost certainly not the lurid, graphic propaganda on display here- but still, it suggests the use of freed-slave blood magic should be accepted as extremely likely.  Not simply by its leaders (as evidenced by the races of the group surrounding the central sacrificial figure) but by common members of the rebellion, both elvhen and kossith.

 

 This is granted additional, though tenuous, support in the following in-game conversation and party banter.

 

Inquisitor:  “You said that the censure against blood magic was superstition.”

Solas:  “ I did.  It is fortunate Cassandra is not within earshot.  Most modern cultures forbid blood magic.  Publically, even Tevinter disapproves of it.  But as I said- magic is magic.  It matters in only how it is used.”
Inquisitor:  “I’d be interested in learning more about blood magic.”
Solas:  “I would teach you if I knew it.  Unfortunately it seems blood magic makes it more difficult to enter the fade.  You understand why I never bothered to learn it.  A shame, as it is extremely powerful.   Provided it remains a tool… not a crutch.  Nor a passion.”

 

Blackwall:  “Magic has little place in a war between men.”

Solas:  “Many mages are brutes, seeing nothing more than a larger ball of fire. But those with imagination, those who use war to push the limits of the possible ...”
Blackwall:  “I wish the Chantry could better enforce restrictions against its use.”
Solas:  “Such rules never hold. Any who want victory will find some reason their cause merits exception.  The best we can do is ensure the world still stands when this fight ends.”

 

Knowing what we do about Solas' perspective on his own actions as Falon’Din during this era, there’s an undertone of (self-) recrimination in these conversations that seems to support the likely use of blood magic in the context of the failed rebellion.   Its more extreme forms of practice would have been used in desperation- a means to an end that might have arguably justified its use had it succeeded, but ended instead in failure.

 

The Archdemon

 

 

Gatsi's Codex: 

Spoiler

I gather this one is titled "The Archdemon." Not "The Three Archdemons," and I'll get back to that. Good construction here. A nice balanced carving, if you consider Tevinters to have equal weight to the dragon's arse. Not a bad comparison, you ask me.

 

Seven magisters and some easy symmetry to give a host something to sound smart about after dinner. If I had to guess, they'd go on about how four lines, and four magisters, are part of the dragon and favored. Two lines are piercing it, so they do more damage than good. And one, that big one farthest out, has missed the thing completely. If this was carved around the Third Blight, that gets you three heads. Doesn't matter, those are all shallow details, probably followed by "and it speaks to me because my soul something regret whatever."

 

Now, the first thing those spits don't understand is that carving isn't just what you see. They've never made a physical thing and don't know the how of it. Depth is all tricks of shadow and such; the actual cuts are only as deep as the sculptor wants. And if you take a flat edge to this thing, what she wanted is strange. Because what I'm thinking is that this is one Archdemon and the three heads are the reaction to the three lines. Because piercing-line-one is on the same tier as the Tevinter second from left, and the middle head turned away. Piercing-line-two is the same tier as Tevinter fifth from left, and the first head turned away. And the line that misses, that's the same tier as the big Tevinter, farthest out. And the dragon is looking straight at him. So the ones who did damage, the dragon doesn't care. The one who faked it, the dragon gives him an eyeful.

 

Now, add to that: artists like to hit big targets, but this carving has no faces. If she wanted to carve specific people, they'd be there, she has that skill. So, what if she's not after the magisters, she's carved Tevinter itself? You've got four ages of the empire where they're part of the dragon, two where they damage it, and one where they miss the point entirely and it gets them eaten. Think about it too much, and I bet you could come up with five different ways match their calendar, including your favorite aunt's birthday.

 

So, there you go. That's how to go from "balanced" to "not invited next time." At my house, anyway.

 

Saran wrap theory: This is a hard panel to explain in the saran wrap context, revealing one of its many weaknesses as a counter-explanation.  A representation of Mythal deciding to "turn" on Elgar'nan?  It's plausible.  But if so, who are the other figures she ignores?  Two members of the Pantheon that represented a greater harm to the People but went unpunished?

 

Tinfoil Theory: This panel serves as an explanation for those that follow.  As evidenced in the first panel, three primary Pantheon leaders are implied to have been involved in the failed rebellion: Andruil, Ghilan’nain, and Dirthamen/Falon’Din.  The dragon represents judgment by the forces of Order.  The first two attacking figures, whose involvement it suggests may have been more direct and effective, are ignored by the dragon.  Elgar’nan/Mythal cannot punish either Ghilan’nain or Andruil, as the only punative options are death (which would be negated by the OGS powers of Falon’Din) or imprisonment in the Void (directly dependent on Ghilan’nain’s collaborative OGS prison forms).  Dirthamen alone can be made an example, and thus the dragon turns the full brunt of its fury on him.

 

Invasion

 

 

Gatsi's Codex: 

Spoiler

This pretty collection is "Invasion." Big claim for seven people and one castle. Maybe "dreams" aren't as grand as mages claim. Flying looks like fun, though. Like falling, but up. So, not like falling at all.

 

It's seven here, seven magisters. Only five detailed, but that's because two have been chipped away. Looks like vandals; done with a rock, not chisel. Hard to come up with a reason to do it poorly like that except fear or lack of time. Maybe they had symbols different from the ones left because symbols are always making people angry enough to chip rock.

 

So these seven invade the Golden City. That's what it's meant to be because it's all fanciful. Needs stairs, if you ask me. Don't care if you can fly; stairs aren't just functional. They lead the eye and ground the structure. Here the sculptor hasn't just left them off, she's made the place too high. Anyone with a sense of Stone will tell you that this place is coming down under its own weight. It's intentional because it's a "god's" house, but I'm not sure what the style mishmash has to do with the "wonder" of that. If this were a real place from that long ago, you'd see only Tevinter in the architecture. But this looks like typical post-empire bluster, adding elven bits like they always owned it. That's an artist for you. A mason would have at least got it the right way round. Tevinter foundation with elven overlay, not muddled.

 

Anyway, simple message: the carver wants it known that mortals aren't supposed to be there. No stairs.

 

Saran wrap theory: This is the beginning of the attack on Arlathan, in which Mythal and Fen'Harel (represented, I suppose, by Dirthamen?) take on the Golden City as a symbol of Elgar'nan's Order.  The weak fit again calls this theory's plausiblity into question.

 

Tinfoil theory: The forces of Order, led by Mythal, prepare to attack Falon’Din / Dirthamen.  Mythal’s representation as the central figure seems clear, as it’s underscored by the distinctive “four-horned” depiction we’ve come to associate with her in both human and dragon form. The identity of the others is less certain, though we can assume by process of elimination that the female figure at the far left is likely Sylaise.   The figure to her right is particularly interesting, as Mythal seems to be gesturing at him in an almost conciliatory manner, possibly holding back the full extent of his rage.  Given that perspective, this is most likely Elgar’nan, and if so, the symbols we see associated with him here have important echoes that spread and intersect with Solas (Dirthamen/Falon’Din) in myriad ways throughout the DA universe.  First, the symbol on the back of his head.

 

 

This has an obvious echo in the symbol of the Inquisition, with the key change being a sword piercing it- perhaps representing the Inquisition as an intentionally oppositional force.  

 

 

The second symbol is also interesting, given that it seems (at least superficially) to be something very like an inversion of the symbol the Qunari adopted to represent their nation.  Nothing solid can be built of this yet-  just pointing out potential connections to be discarded or built on later.  

 

 

The figure to Mythal’s immediate right is also difficult to place, particularly since degradation of the relief itself makes it difficult to discern with clarity whether the figure is facing the city or the assembled group.   The trident staff is potentially a unique identifier, however, and should be noted to prime future association.   The final figure is similarly uncertain, though his staff is interestingly suggestive (and carefully cut off so as to remain ambiguous - thanks a lot, art guy!) of either concentric circles that might indicate the Sun or the jagged crescent that the darkspawn of DAO repeat in their pseudo-religious structures.  Either interpretation would potentially force us to re-evaluate the larger context, making this Elgar’nan and the symbolically marked figure  in the foreground Falon’Din, watching helplessly from the fade as the forces of Order converged to punish Dirthamen. 

 

The Fall

 

 

Gatsi's Codex: 

Spoiler

Now here's a happy study. "The Fall," and a face that says, "Why did we try to go where there were no stairs?" Because you go into an impossible building like that, you're coming out on fire, and then it will flip or something. I still do not see the appeal of dreams.

 

So, your seven magisters entered, and they came out blighted and not sure which way is up. I'll pass that off to the sculptor trying to represent madness. I mean, towers here, upended over there. You know what kind of force it would take to flip that much stone? It'd do more than burn your beard.

 

Here's something interesting, though. You've got a hint of pigment and leaf causing some sheen, but there's meant to be more. All of these were painted and repainted at some point, to match whatever lord's three-holer. But there's a type of finishing that you can do, a very fine and time-consuming pass that evens the surface. Do it right, you can get stone as smooth as glass. And that tower, and Beardy's skull, are meant to have it. And only a little is present on the others.

 

So, the first time this carving was wheeled out, it would have looked like Beardy was the target, so maybe he was first in the door? And the "light," it burns him and spreads to the others. And the polish or leaf would have caught light like a mirror and caused the viewer to squint. They'd have to look down or away, "joining" the magisters in their punishment. Makes them feel part of it.

 

That's what I figure, anyway. And it would sure keep the children out of the feast hall.

 

Saran wrap theory:  Depicts the fall of Arlathan.  Elgar'nan burns as the Golden City is charred black.

 

Tinfoil theory: The final relief depicts the punishment itself.  As Gatsi intimates, the idea of light striking the tower and the central figure is likely intentional, perhaps intended to suggest the nature of the weapon used: weaponized light, a beam weapon similar in basic nature to the one we encounter in game at the Citadelle du Corbeau.  Given its similar special treatment, the tower seems to have been of particular importance as well- but without further evidence we can only hazard a guess that there may be a potential connection to the tower depicted in Dirthamen’s temple below.    

 

 

This final panel allows us to both track and understand the evolution of elvhen Dirthamen to human Dumat, so bear with me while I lay out the foundation.  The first key is establishing the distinctive nature of the figure being presented.  Though the ambiguity of the background serves to obscure this fact, on close examination the main figure seems to have four total arms.  

 

 

This is a feature we see repeated in several of Ghilan’nain’s creations that have no (known) modern descendants, and functions as a hint of her alliance.  

 

 

This is also, critically, reflected in two examples of figures of worship:  Dumat, and the Thing in the Dark.  As I will explain shortly, there is strong evidence that they are one and the same. 

 

 

As covered in the theory wiki, an established punishment for treason in ancient Elvhanan was being cast into the Void, with evidence of the traitor’s existence among the People being almost fully erased from history and society.  For a former member of the Pantheon, this imprisonment would have had additional repercussions- his lands and people would have been forfeit, his temples abandoned or destroyed.  

 

Erasure would be a far more difficult task for the Pantheon to perform on one of its own members, however.   Though direct worshippers could be killed (and were, if the fate of the Barindur can be taken as any indication) societies that favored one god above others but acknowledged the existence of a larger group could not be easily convinced to forget the existence of individual members of their Pantheon.  At the time of the failed rebellion, no member of the Pantheon held sway over a populace that did not include worshippers of other members- and in Ferelden at least, it seems attempts to stamp out worship simply drove it underground.  

 

We see this most obviously (and literally) in our exploration of the Temple of Dirthamen in DAI.  Above ground, the ruins that remain show evidence of being largely reappropriated by other members of the Pantheon.  The mosaics are of Falon’Din and Ghilan’nain, the statuary of Mythal (with the later addition of Fen’Harel upon restoration to the Pantheon).  Below ground, however, we find evidence of persistent worship that seems to center around a new figure.   The statuary incarnations of this figure are crude inuksuit, likely dating to the fall of Arlathan and indicative of the social chaos caused by the breakdown of Elvhen society, and were likely representative of the only power that might have remained able (in a very limited fashion) to interact with the mortal world after the fall:  Falon’Din / Dirthamen.  

 

 

And though the connection is far more tenous, the mosaic image also calls into question the bearded skull icon that seems to trace back to the earliest human settlements in Ferelden.  This may be evidence that the cult spread to human tribes before being adopted in its final “Dumat” form.   

 

 

The cult seems to persist through the ages as an undercurrent in elvish society, coming again to relative prominence as the elves build Halamshiral.  At this point, their craftsmen have both time and social resources to create statuary of the being their ancestors would have once encountered in dreams before he was judged and sealed in the void as the Dread Wolf.

 

 

This figure, grotesque and misshapen, is Dirthamen/Falon'Din.   Burned horribly by the fire we witnessed in the final bas relief panel, the tendons of his hands and feet are tightly curled by third degree burn contracture, his flesh striated and scarred, the features of his face melted to the point of being rendered almost unrecognizable as elvhen.  Tellingly, however, the “Thing in the Dark” retains the features that allow us to definitively tie him to both Dirthamen and Dumat: a distinctive number of arms, as well as the spiral iconography commonly associated with the fade. 

[madrar]

Quick errata!  For what it's worth, I'm fairly convinced that the scene depicted in "Invasion" is being viewed via the Fade, based in part by the swirling sky and what seem to be multiple non-Pantheon figures floating above the invaders.

 

 

Taking this perspective would confirm the figure in the foreground as Falon'din, cut off from Dirthamen and relegated to the Fade by Mythal for his part in the rebellion.  Elgar'nan would be the figure to the far right, calling lightning to strike Dirthamen's tower- and as before, the potential connection between his crescent staff and the jagged lightning-crescent effigies worshipped by darkspawn should be noted.

 

[RoraM]

Just curious about your thoughts on Xenon the Antiquarian, the multi-limbed immortal who, like Tithonus, forgot to ask for eternal youth as he relates to Dumat and the Thing in the Dark. 

[madrar]

Just curious about your thoughts on Xenon the Antiquarian, the multi-limbed immortal who, like Tithonus, forgot to ask for eternal youth as he relates to Dumat and the Thing in the Dark. 

 

I have no idea what's going on with Xenon.  @w@  I wish I did.

 

I don't think his current form is related to the theory above, though- it seems more likely to be a result of the many, many magical remedies he's tried in the ages since his bargain.  I do, on the other hand, think there's likely to be a direct relationship between Dirthamen-Falon'Din and the very particular form that Envy Demons take.  

 

Spoiler

 

As noted in another thread, various spirit/demon pairs seem to have a fundamental connection with members of the Pantheon.  Envy shares obvious physical characteristics with Falon'Din-Dirthamen above and its nature seems to be a match as well, given that its positive aspect is likely a Spirit of Empathy.  (Empathy can be understood as the ability to take on another's perspective, while Envy takes the concept one step too far, attempting to embody them entirely.)

[NWN-Ming-Ming]

I'm curious, maybe I have missed something somewhere, but I was curious where did you get your idea of Falon-Din being essentially the same being as Dirthamen?  I love your hypothesis, but I am just mystified by the duality aspect, which is something I haven't observed before in DA lore.

 

Please do continue with your awesome theories though!  I loved reading this!

 

Out of curiosity, have you read Autumnwitch's Sera-Andruil theory?  What sold me on it were the Tarot Cards comparison here and here. 

 

.

[madrar]

I'm curious, maybe I have missed something somewhere, but I was curious where did you get your idea of Falon-Din being essentially the same being as Dirthamen?  I love your hypothesis, but I am just mystified by the duality aspect, which is something I haven't observed before in DA lore.

 

Please do continue with your awesome theories though!  I loved reading this!

 

Out of curiosity, have you read Autumnwitch's Sera-Andruil theory?  What sold me on it were the Tarot Cards comparison here and here. 

 

No problem!   The two are referred to as "inseparable twins" in Dalish lore, the oldest of which refers to Falon’Din as “Dirthamen’s shadow” and Dirthamen as “Falon’Din’s reflection.”  I suspect the reality of their relationship is a bit more complicated.  The two seem to be fragments of primordial Order and Chaos, fused into a single being in an attempt to achieve balance, and thus an end to the eternal war. 

 

Anyway, I'm totally on board with Sera-Andruil, and think the same likely extends to Sandal-June and Kieran-Ghilan'nain.  I believe all of the entities we know as "Old God Souls" were willingly bound to the reincarnation cycle of Thedas, each with a singular purpose that's (unfortunately) been largely lost due to the memory-wiping effect of passing through the veil.  

 

That's heavy-tinfoil theory, though... grain of salt, etc.  ^w^

[jedidotflow]

Freed Are Slaves can be explained as an Elvish mosaic repurposed by a Tevinter magister, as you well said. However, there used to be 7 figures because these represent the 7 figures of the Elvhen pantheon excluding dead Mythal and rebelling Fen'Harel. This looks to be the only mosaic that is linked to the Elves. The rest seem to be about the Tevinter magisters that entered the Golden City/Arlathan.