'These leaves,' he said, 'I have walked far to find; for this plant does not grow in the bare hills; but in the thickets away south of the Road I found it in the dark by the scent of its leaves...'"
FOTR Chapter 12
The following project was inspired by Udwin's reference to the slit pouches of native North America:
I was quite taken with his idea, as I love the utility of slit pouches - for a given size, I find there's remarkably less fumbling about for a buried item than I experience with a deep drawstring purse.Udwin wrote:in Book 1, Chapter 12, we read how Strider retrieves leaves of Athelas“...from the pouch at his belt...â€. In thinking of smallish pouches carried about one's waist, I am reminded of 'split pouches' popular among Great Lakes/Eastern Woodland Natives.
I thought the design might be interesting then if given a more European flavor to better fit Middle Earth. When I paired that thought with my desire for a way to collect small amounts of wild materials along the trail without filling my regular pouches with dirt and debris, the lasdhir was born.
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Using the pouch:
As with so many of the mundane accouterments of everyday life, the origin of the lasdhir is lost to memory. Some say it originated with the wildermen of the west: others claim it must have originated with the Eldar. Regardless of the truth, it serves the men of the North humbly and well. Occasionally decorated, usually left plain, it is not unknown amongst those who make their way in the wild...
"Lasdhir" - a corruption of the Sindarin "little leaf" is - is a rather small slit pouch typically carried by simply passing one half through the belt:
It can then be quickly brought to hand, and carried as a gathering-purse of sorts as the occasion demands.