Lore:Comets

An Aetherial Comet (ESO)

Comets are celestial bodies characterized by their small size, composition of ice and dust, and the distinctive trails known as a comet's tail. They move through the heavens, and are often linked to significant events and frequently hold symbolic importance across various cultures and religions. They also are present in some magical practices.

Cultural Interpretations

During the Interregnum, vials of comet dust were commonly found across Tamriel. Some of these small vials contained dust that allegedly fell from the sky when a starry comet streaked over the Iliac Bay. Some celestial animals were named after the comet. Comet-Wine is an alcoholic beverage named after the comet. Magic involving the summoning of comets from constellations existed.

Altmer

Comets are a present theme in Altmeri musical and poetic traditions. One song, The Star-Eyed Bride of Alinor, uses the imagery of a comet's tail to evoke the beauty of an Altmeri lady's hair.

Ayleid

Ayleids were known to recreate the effect of a shooting star passing through the night sky using magic. This practice was later adopted by mages from other cultures for decorative purposes, such as an individual known as Uryacil.

Dunmer

One of the origin stories of Baar Dau claims that it was a frozen comet that Vivec suspended in the air above the city.

An esoteric text of Velothi origins, From Exile to Exodus, describes Azura to be as bright as eightfold comets.

Khajiit

Khunzar-ri, an ancient Khajiiti hero, was famously known for taming a comet according to one of the tales, which is believed to be exaggerated.

Reachfolk

According to the hagiography of Emperor Durcorach, a great comet blazed across the sky on the night of his birth, and a flock of silver swans flew over his mother's humble shelter at the hour he came into the world.

Redguard

An Imperial account by Flaccus Terentius states that King Fahara'jad of Sentinel gained support for his alliance with King Emeric and stirred religious fervor after a starry comet appeared in the northern skies, which he believed was a sign from HoonDing, the Yokudan Make Way God.

Notes

• One source claims that Lorkhan's Heart has often been described as a falling star or comet, similar to other imaginative descriptions like fires thrown by Sheogorath or the burning corpses of racial heroes such as Baan-Dar, and giant rocks like the Ministry of Truth. It argues that these are fanciful tales rather than accurate accounts, favoring the theory that comets and "falling stars" are natural and necessary transfers of Aetheric energies into Mundus.

References

Note: The following references are considered to be unofficial sources. They are included to round off this article and may not be authoritative or conclusive.