Elvish Glades

The Sirannar, the native Elvish inhabitants of Siragale, had a culture that combined traditional Silvan lifeways with touches of the sophisticated culture of Noldo Lindon. Siranna dwellings were of the simplest construction, woven, with craft or magic or both, from locally harvested wood and fiber.Intricate carvings, beaded and feathered furs, and delicately patterned mats and hangings ornament this simplicity, showing evidence of ancient  skill and endless patience.Here and there were delicate, beautifully-wrought silver and platinum ornaments, jewelry, badges, buckles, and clasps.Few  Sirannar owed more than one or two such precious items; luxury was considered a mark of dependence on the Tareldar.The most beautiful works in their  homes, and the ones that expressed most clearly their unique heritage, were those made by their own hands.The Sirannar only rarely lived in treeplatforms,  or telain after the manner of their Silvan cousins in Rhovanion. While such homes were highly prized, especially by their clan-lords, the forests of Eriador usually were neither tall enough nor dense  enough to support such an architectural style.Instead, a  Wood-elven village  integrated ground-based buildings, tree-homes, and glades surrounded by flowering bushes and shaded trees into complex mazes that would be confusing  and frightening to anyone but another Siranna.Their galadhrynd (S. "Forest Villages" or lit."Tree-Halls") had the names usually ascribed to gatherings  of trees: "Mintling Copse", "Greenthicket", and "Coning Grove",  were the Westron names of ancient Siranna communities found within the bounds of the Shire after T.A.1640.Most, either because of their strategic location or the value of their woodlands, eventually became Hobbit steadings and villages. Few retained the flavor of their Siranna ancestry; even Hobbits felt little need to be so intimate with the forest.Since the Sirannar seldom moved large burdens into their homes, they left no openings large enough for a cart—often not even a horse—to move through.Their approach paths were not  obvious, often appearing as deer trails.Anyone who traveled them might notice an archway effect of the branches spreading overhead and an abundance of  flowers in graceful patterns during the spring and summer.