A song composed by an unknown author1 telling the tale of the making of the Sun and Moon from the last fruit and flower of the Two Trees of Valinor. No record of the Narsilion remains beyond its bare existence, and so its contents are uncertain, but it seems at least to have described the ordering of the new lights by the Valar, and their assignment to the Maiar Arien and Tilion.
It's common to find that Tolkien's allusions to literary works within his tales actually relate to real poems or stories created by himself. In the case of the Narsilion, however, this doesn't appear to be the case. In volume IV of The History of Middle-earth, Christopher Tolkien reports: 'If there ever was a 'song of the Sun and Moon' ... it has disappeared.'
Notes
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The Aldudénië, the Lament for the Two Trees, was a work clearly related to the Narsilion, as it told of the Darkening that led to the making of the Sun and Moon. The Lament was known to have been created by Elemmírë of the Vanyar, so it seems conceivable that he also composed the Song of the Sun and Moon as a continuation of the same epic tale. The Narsilion's author is never named by Tolkien, though, so its true authorship must remain in the realm of speculation.
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- Updated 23 October 2008
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