Day 17 of SWG 30-Day Character Study. My character is Mairon | Sauron | Annatar.

Today's prompt: Affiliations, Part Two. Think about a group your character belongs to--perhaps a cultural group, a profession, a family or clan, or any other group of affiliated characters. Spend at least a half-hour exploring that affiliation in any way you choose.

I chose a group Mairon was closely affiliated with in Eregion: Gwaith-i-Mírdain, the People of the Jewel-smiths.

After reading their Tolkien Gateway wiki page, I continued from there to the main sources where this group is discussed in Tolkien's Legendarium: LotR Appendix B, and the Silmarillion: Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age. I also read a part of Letter 131 from JRR Tolkien's Letters. Another good source was Oshun's character biography of Celebrimbor.

Gwaith-i-Mírdain was a guild of craftsmen founded by some of those Noldor (including Celebrimbor) who settled in Eregion in the year 750 of the Second Age. They went there because they had learned that mithril had been discovered in Moria (LotR Appendix B). I find it interesting that the existence of mithril was a major motivator for them because it is known that Sauron, too, desired mithril. It's said that "Of what they [the Dwarves of Moria] brought to light the Orcs have gathered nearly all, and given it in tribute to Sauron, who covets it [wants it very much]" (LotR: A Journey in the Dark).

Eregion, and Gwaith-i-Mírdain, was famous of the exceptional friendship between Dwarves and Elves, "such as has never elsewhere been, to the enrichment of both those peoples" (The Silm: Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age). When Sauron – as Annatar – came to Ost-in-Edhil in 1200 S.A, the jewel-smiths of Eregion had already experienced a fruitful collaboration of two different peoples and seen the merit of co-working and learning from each other. It was easy for Annatar to find a place for himself in such a community.

And Annatar surely fulfilled the wishes of the Noldor who "desired ever to increase the skill and subtlety of their works" (Silm). Annatar also seems quite willing to share his knowledge with the Mírdain; "they learned of him many things, for his knowledge was great" (Silm). Indeed, the Noldor mastered their art during that time. But were the Noldor the only ones who benefited, or did Sauron also gain something from this collaboration?

I don't see Sauron as fully evil at this point. Unlike in Númenor, I don't think that he came to Ost-in-Edhil just to bring it down. In the Silmarillion (Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age), Sauron claims to love Middle-earth as much as the Noldor of Eregion who had decided to stay. He has a vision of Middle-earth as fair as Eressëa or even Valinor, but no means to accomplish that alone. With the help of the Gwaith-i-Mírdain, they could work together to fulfill Sauron's – or perhaps their common – dream. Sauron uses inspiring words as he speaks about his vision, even challenging the Gwaith-i-Mírdain: "Is it not then our task to labour together for its [Middle-earth's] enrichment" (Silm). I wonder when it became their common vision, or did they share it already in the beginning? In any case, Sauron could not have found a more similar-minded group in Middle-earth.