Amon Rûdh

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Amon Rûdh
Hill
Ted Nasmith - Túrin and his Band are Led to Amon Rûdh.jpg
"Túrin and his Band are Led to Amon Rûdh" by Ted Nasmith
General Information
Pronunciationah-mon rooth
Other namesSharbhund (K), Bald Hill
LocationSouth of the Teiglin; Dor-Cúarthol
TypeHill
DescriptionTall, steep hill topped with red seregon
People and History
InhabitantsPetty-dwarves, and Gaurwaith
EventsSack of Bar-en-Danwedh
GalleryImages of Amon Rûdh

Amon Rûdh was a hill that lay south of the Forest of Brethil and the Teiglin in West Beleriand during the First Age.[1] It rose a thousand feet above the eastern edge of high moorlands. It was a hill of stone, on its lower slopes were thickets of aeglos but only deep red seregon flowers grew on top, giving it the appearance of being covered with blood.[2]

History[edit | edit source]

At one time Amon Rûdh supported a settlement of Petty-dwarves in caves that could have housed a hundred or more. It had a main and secondary hall with many other chambers and passageways. There was a hidden smoke-shaft for the hearth and chambers with axes and other gear. However the Petty-dwarves had dwindled in number until only Mîm and his sons Ibun and Khîm lived in hilltop hideaway.

Mîm was captured by a group of outlaws led by Túrin Turambar and forced to reveal the location of his refuge, which was then called Bar-en-Danwedh, the "House of Ransom". (Previously, it had been known as Bar-en-Nibin-noeg, the "House of the Petty Dwarves".) When it was discovered that Khîm, who had been shot at, had actually been killed, Túrin repented and offered his services to the Dwarf, who from then on tolerated the presence of the outlaws.

Amon Rûdh became the base of operations for the outlaws and with the arrival of Beleg, it became the heart of the area known as Dor-Cúarthol, the "Land of Bow and Helm" (referring to the Two Captains, Beleg and Túrin), a center of resistance against the forces of Morgoth. Eventually Túrin's location was discovered, and the outlaws were destroyed by Orcs, and the hilltop was covered with blood in truth.[2]

Amon Rûdh was lost under the sea with the destruction of Beleriand during the War of Wrath at the end of the First Age.

Etymology[edit | edit source]

Amon Rûdh means "Bald Hill" in Sindarin, from amon ("hill") and rûdh ("bald").[2]

Sharbhund means "Bald Hill" in Khuzdul, bund being the word for "head".[3]

The first element meaning "bald" would be *shar(a)h. The cluster -rbh- could be the result of metathesis (from *sharhbund).[4]

References