A dragon on "House of the Dragon."
In the season 1 finale of HBO’s “House of the Dragon,” one particularly intriguing scene showed Daemon approaching a ruthless looking dragon that fans had never seen before. As the season 2 premiere neared, some viewers were wondering again about the background of this mysterious dragon. Vermithor later made an even bigger appearance in the penultimate episode of season 2.
Daemon Sang a High Valyrian Song to Vermithor
Vermithor. Famed Unclaimed Dragon.
If you followed HBO on Twitter (now X), the mystery of the dragon’s identity in the season 1 finale was officially resolved there. In a tweet, HBO shared that Daemon was singing to Vermithor the “Famed Unclaimed Dragon.”
According to the Wiki of Westeros, Daemon was singing a High Valyrian song called Haros Bartossi, which includes words about following his voice, blood magic, and visions of flames.
The scene happened after the Greens installed Aegon II on the Iron Throne, despite Rhaenyra having the rightful claim from the now-dead King Viserys. The Blacks rallied around Rhaenyra, supporting her claim against the Greens. But as they considered whether or not they could wage a successful war, they made a count of how many dragons they had available to them.
During this discussion, Daemon talked about riderless dragons in Dragonstone that might be tamed. A later scene shows him entering the Dragonmount caverns and singing a song in High Valyrian. A vicious, large dragon with a broken horn rises before Daemon as he sings, fire exploding from his throat.
Vermithor Was Once a Claimed Dragon
Vermithor is the second-largest dragon in Westeros, according to George R. R. Martin’s Fire & Blood book, outsized only by the dragon Aemond so dramatically claimed in season 1, named Vhagar. It was Vhagar who killed Lucerys and his dragon Arrax. The scene showed the power of the dragons, as both Lucerys and Aemond briefly lost control of their beasts, leading to the vicious deaths. Vhagar was later the source of even more deaths in season 2.
Vermithor was not always a riderless dragon. He was once ridden by King Jaehaerys Targaryen I and hasn’t had a rider since. (Jaehaerys is briefly seen at the very beginning of “House of the Dragon” season 1, declaring Viserys the Prince of Dragonstone.)
Vermithor’s first mentioned in Martin’s novella “The Princess and the Queen,” and described as a bronze dragon with tan wings. He was once also outsized by Balerion, Aegon the Conqueror’s dragon. Balerion is long dead by the time “House of the Dragon” begins, and his skull is even seen on display.
According to the Wiki of Westeros, Vermithor is nicknamed “Bronze Fury.” He has a dragon mate named Silverwing. In the penultimate episode of season 2, Rhaenyra referred to this nickname and viewers also got to see Silverwing for the first time.
As for Vermithor’s broken horn, the books don’t seem to address that, so one has to rely on fan theories for ideas until an official reason is given.
In one Reddit discussion, viewers wondered if some dragons might lose their horns with age.
In another Reddit discussion, viewers bring up that Vermithor didn’t likely see any major battles under Jaehaerys. Others mention another dragon on Dragonstone named Cannibal, and wonder if a fight between the two dragons might have resulted in the broken horn.
You can see more concept designs for Vermithor, shared by “House of the Dragon” concept artist and creature designer Constantine Sekeris, here.
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Meet Vermithor on ‘House of the Dragon’: His Lineage & History