3

WARNING: A Dance With Dragons spoilers ahead!

In one of Jon's POV chapters we see

Mance get burned (almost) alive. But before that Melisandre sets fire to The Horn of Joramun.

What I find interesting is that it seems as though she uses Wildfire to achieve the burn, but it is nowhere stated explicitly whether this is true or not.

Here is the relevant text (I have highlighted the important parts):

FREE FOLK!” cried Melisandre. “Behold the fate of those who choose the darkness!”
The Horn of Joramun burst into flame.
It went up with a whoosh as swirling tongues of green and yellow fire leapt up crackling all along its length.
-A Song of Ice and Fire: A Dance With Dragons - Part One (Dreams and Dust), Jon.

Reasons why I think it's Wildfire:

  • "Green and yellow" seem to me a characteristic of Wildfire
  • When I think about it you probably would need Wildfire to burn a horn that big
  • Melisandre and the Red Priest are quite similar and Thoros uses wildfire to light his sword1
Improve this question
4
  • It's more likely the horn is somehow magical itself.
    – curiousdannii
    Commented Jun 24, 2014 at 6:22
  • But Mance stated that they never found the real horn, they just took the biggest one they had ever seen from a giant's grave...
    – Justin Ethier
    Commented Jun 24, 2014 at 14:49
  • 2
    Judging by the precautions the alchemists took with wildfire, storing it in cool cellars and under water, with sand traps to quench any fire, it feels unlikely that Melisandre is carrying wildfire around with her. In her POV however, we saw that she carried around lots of powders to create various fire and smoke effects, so if I had to guess, I would say it was a powder. Fireworks.
    – TLP
    Commented Jun 24, 2014 at 15:05
  • 1
    @TLP Fireworks does seem very plausible, especially with the "crackling all up its length" part of the quote.
    – Möoz
    Commented Jul 1, 2014 at 22:34

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
5

It's a distinct possibility

TV Spoilers:

In the seventh episode of season 4 "Mockingbird", Melisandre reveals to Queen Selyse that she employs various chemicals to create the pyrotechnics she uses in her sermons and devotions. Someone as knowledgeable about fire as Melisandre would definitely know about Wildfire. So it's a real possibility that she did use it to burn the Horn of Joramun in that dramatic manner.

Improve this answer
1
  • One can only wonder how much she is lying about seeing things in the flames.
    – user24620
    Commented Jun 24, 2014 at 0:22

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.