Kraken
A kraken is a large sea creature, likely similar to the giant squid. Krakens are said to be strong enough to pull down a whaling ship.[1]
The Summer Sea south of Dorne is said to be infested with krakens,[2] as are the waters of the northern Sunset Sea.[3] Krakens have also reportedly been seen in the southern Sunset Sea west of Westeros,[4] in the Summer Sea west of Qarth,[5] and in the narrow sea,[1] including between the Broken Arm and the Stepstones.[6]
Contents
Culture
Tales of the Seven Kingdoms claim that large dragons could pluck krakens from the sea.[5]
According to ironborn legend, Nagga, the first sea dragon, was big enough to feed on krakens and leviathans.[7][8]
The ancient Seastone Chair is carved in the shape of a great kraken from an immense block of oily black stone.[9][10]
The arms of House Greyjoy of Pyke depict a golden kraken on black.[11] By metonymy, the ironborn as a whole are often referred to as "krakens" or "squids".[1][12][13] Victarion Greyjoy's cloak is made of nine layers of cloth-of-gold, sewn in the shape of a kraken, with arms that reach his boots. His tall black iron warhelm is wrought in the shape of a kraken, its arms coiling down around his cheeks to meet beneath his jaw.[14]
Lord Balon Greyjoy's ship is called Great Kraken.[9] Kraken's Kiss is another longship of the Iron Fleet.[15]
Cape Kraken is a peninsula historically contested by ironborn and northmen.[16]
The legendary Hrothgar of Pyke had a kraken-summoning horn,[10] and House Celtigar is rumored to have a similar horn among their treasures at Claw Isle.[17][18]
In the Merman's Court, the great hall of the New Castle in White Harbor, there is a painting of a kraken and a grey leviathan locked in battle.[19]
History
The Seastone Chair, carved into the shape of a kraken, was said to have been found by the First Men when they first came to Old Wyk. Archmaester Haereg argued that the chair was made by the first inhabitants of the Iron Islands, who came from an unknown land west of the Sunset Sea.[10]
King Loron Greyjoy was called "the Old Kraken". He led an invasion of the western shores of the north, taking Bear Island and Cape Kraken in the process. After the Old Kraken died, King Rodrik Stark reclaimed Bear Island, while his sons and grandsons battled for Cape Kraken.[20]
After King Aegon I Targaryen's burning of Harrenhal in 2 BC resulted in the death of King Harren Hoare and the destruction of House Hoare, claimants to the kingship of the Iron Islands battled for power for more than a year. It was said that the waters between the islands were so choked with corpses, that hundreds of krakens appeared, attracted by the blood.[21]
In 2 AC, King Aegon I Targaryen invaded the Iron Islands to put down several rebellious would-be kings. Priest-King Lodos called upon the krakens of the deep to drag down Aegon's warships. When that failed to happen, Lodos filled his robes with stones, and walked into the sea to "take counsel" with his claimed father, the Drowned God. Thousands followed Lodos. Their corpses would wash up on the shores for years to come, except for Lodos's own body.[21][22]
In 56 AC, when planning to travel west of Westeros to discover new lands, Alys Westhill chose to avoid the northern Sunset Sea and its many dangers, including monstrous krakens, and decided on a more southerly route for the journey of her Sun Chaser.[3]
Ser Eustace Hightower and his brother, Ser Norman, accompanied Alys Westhill's journey west, on their ships Lady Meredith and Autumn Moon. When Ser Eustace returned to Oldtown in 59 AC, he related that in the midst of a great storm that struck Autumn Moon's mast with lightning, one of his crewmen screamed that he saw kraken arms rising from the sea. Ser Eustace then saw a monstrous wave sink Autumn Moon, but the crew of the Lady Meredith claimed it was a kraken that had pulled the ship beneath the sea. Afterwards, Ser Eustace's crew demanded to return to Westeros, afraid of encountering further krakens.[4]
In 128 AC, while fighting in the Stepstones as a sellsail, the fifteen-year-old Dalton Greyjoy saw his uncle killed and avenged his death. Because Dalton emerged from the fight entirely drenched in blood from a dozen wounds, men began calling him "the Red Kraken". Later that year, Dalton returned to the Iron Islands to claim the Seastone Chair after hearing of his father's death.[23]
Recent Events
A Storm of Swords
While traveling on the Balerion in the Summer Sea from Qarth to Pentos, Ser Jorah Mormont convinces Queen Daenerys Targaryen to instead sail for Astapor, buy an army of Unsullied, and continue to Pentos overland. When she points out that there are dangers on such a long march, he tells her that there are dangers at sea as well, such as krakens that could pull their ship under.[5]
During the small council meeting in King's Landing to discuss the progress of the War of the Five Kings, Varys tells the attendees that a kraken has been seen off the Fingers. The kraken reportedly attacked an Ibbenese whaler ship and pulled it under.[1]
While traveling on a ferry across the Trident during a storm, Arya Stark sees an uprooted tree whose roots and limbs reach for them like the arms of a kraken.[24]
Ser Axell Florent suggests that King Stannis Baratheon sack Claw Isle for its treasure, but Davos Seaworth convinces him otherwise.[17] Later, Stannis's sellsail Salladhor Saan chides Davos for not letting him acquire House Celtigar's treasure, reportedly including a magic horn that can summon krakens from the deep.[18]
A Dance with Dragons
Quaithe gives Daenerys Targaryen a prophetic warning about the dangers coming to her, including a kraken.[25]
At the Merman's Court in House Manderly's New Castle in White Harbor, Davos Seaworth sees a painting of a kraken and a grey leviathan locked in battle.[19]
The Winds of Winter
| Warning This information has thus far been released in a sample chapter for The Winds of Winter, and might therefore not be in finalized form. Keep in mind that the content as described below is still subject to change. |
Lady Valena Toland tells Princess Arianne Martell that sellswords have invaded the Stepstones, and that there are tales of krakens off the Broken Arm, pulling under crippled galleys. Valena says their maester claims that the blood draws them to the surface. She adds that there are bodies which remain in the water, while a few have washed up on Ghost Hill's shores.[6]
Quotes
Krakens rise from the sea, Theon, or did you forget that during your years among the wolves?[26]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 A Storm of Swords, Chapter 19, Tyrion III.
- ↑ The World of Ice & Fire, Dorne.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Fire & Blood, Jaehaerys and Alysanne - Their Triumphs and Tragedies.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Fire & Blood, The Long Reign - Jaehaerys and Alysanne - Policy, Progeny, and Pain.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 A Storm of Swords, Chapter 8, Daenerys I.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 The Winds of Winter, Arianne I
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 A Feast for Crows, Chapter 19, The Drowned Man.
- ↑ The World of Ice & Fire, The Iron Islands: Driftwood Crowns.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 A Clash of Kings, Chapter 11, Theon I.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 The World of Ice & Fire, The Iron Islands.
- ↑ A Game of Thrones, Chapter 7, Arya I.
- ↑ A Storm of Swords, Chapter 24, Bran II.
- ↑ A Storm of Swords, Chapter 43, Arya VIII.
- ↑ A Feast for Crows, Chapter 18, The Iron Captain.
- ↑ A Dance with Dragons, Chapter 63, Victarion I.
- ↑ The World of Ice & Fire, The North: The Mountain Clans.
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 A Storm of Swords, Chapter 36, Davos IV.
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 A Storm of Swords, Chapter 54, Davos V.
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 A Dance with Dragons, Chapter 15, Davos II.
- ↑ The World of Ice & Fire, The North: The Kings of Winter.
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 Fire & Blood, Reign of the Dragon - The Wars of King Aegon I.
- ↑ The World of Ice & Fire, The Iron Islands: The Greyjoys of Pyke.
- ↑ The World of Ice & Fire, The Iron Islands: The Red Kraken.
- ↑ A Storm of Swords, Chapter 47, Arya IX.
- ↑ A Dance with Dragons, Chapter 11, Daenerys II.
- ↑ A Clash of Kings, Chapter 56, Theon V.
- ↑ A Feast for Crows, Chapter 29, The Reaver.
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