The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 1 finale saw Sauron refer back to his earliest beginnings, there remains some ambiguity about his origins. Sauron was like a Middle-earth mystery shopper in Amazon’s The Rings of Power season 1 – everybody knew he was coming, yet nobody knew what he looked like. Season 1, episode 8, unveiled Charlie Vickers’ Halbrand – the supposed King of the Southlands – as the hidden Dark Lord, but when Galadriel confronted him, Halbrand didn’t speak his name. Instead, he admitted, “I have been awake since before the breaking of the first silence.”

The Rings of Power season 2 didn’t reveal any further details about Sauron’s obtuse reference to the first silence, but it did reveal his ageless power in all its glory. Shapeshifting from Halbrand to Annatar in a matter of seconds, Sauron proved what his ancient power rendered him capable of. Entering season 3, Sauron is embodying the Second Age stories that The Rings of Power set out to tell – he will have to divvy out the nine Rings of Men and forge the One Ring. He may also be seeking Númenor’s shores again to spread further corruption, all while the story hopefully explores his origins fully.

Sauron Likely Meant The Beginning Of All Creation

It Makes Sense For Sauron To Be Referring To The Music Of The Ainur

 

One interpretation is that by “breaking of the first silence,” Sauron is referring to the Music of the Ainur, or Ainulindalë, which is J.R.R. Tolkien’s Genesis-inspired creation story. Led by the One Eru Ilúvatar, the Valar and Maiar gathered together and sang. They were living in the Timeless Halls, outside time and space. Outside the Timeless Halls was the void. The Ainur’s music visualized all of creation – and all of time – including Eä (the universe), Arda (the planet), Middle-earth, and the Elves and Men – although it was Eru alone who input on the Elves and Men front.

Eru revealed the vision to his Ainur and sent the Imperishable Flame – the essence of life – down into the void. Guided by this vision, the Ainur went down into the void and created Eä. Since Sauron (then known as Mairon) was among the Ainur, he was indeed brought into existence by Eru before that song of creation was sung. Sauron would understand the renown of the Ainulindalë in Elvish lore. So, if he wasn’t referring to the Ainulindalë when he said “first silence,” he was at least aware of the implication that his words carried.

Why Sauron May NOT Mean The Music Of The Ainur

Sauron Could Have Been Referring To An Earlier Time

The Music of the Ainur is covered right at the beginning of The Silmarillion, but before the creation process begins, Tolkien writes, “For a long while they sang only each alone, or but few together.” This line indicates that before the Ainulindalë, the Ainur would either sing to themselves or in small groups (warming up for the big day probably) but only came together as a full band for the Music of the Ainur itself. That means the silence was technically broken before the fabled Ainulindalë.

Tolkienian Age
Event Marking The Start
Years
Total Length In Solar Years

Before time
Indeterminate
Indeterminate
Indeterminate

Days before Days
The Ainur entered Eä
1 – 3,500 Valian Years
33,537

Pre-First Age Years of the Trees (Y.T.)
Yavanna created the Two Trees

Y.T. 1 – 1050
10,061

First Age (F.A.)
Elves awoke in Cuiviénen
Y.T. 1050 – Y.T. 1500, F.A. 1 – 590
4,902

Second Age (S.A.)
The War of Wrath ended
S.A. 1 – 3441
3,441

Third Age (T.A.)
The Last Alliance defeated Sauron
T.A. 1 – 3021
3,021

The Ainu Sauron was still correct in The Rings of Power season 1’s finale – the Ainur were created before any of them started singing, so whichever one broke that “first silence,” Sauron was present before. Sauron’s “before the breaking of the first silence” line can be interpreted in several ways then. The villain may be speaking poetically, and referring to the Music of the Ainur, or he may be speaking more literally and meaning the silence broken as soon as an Ainur hummed their first tune.

How Old Is Sauron Supposed To Be?

Sauron Was Created Before Time

Pinning down Sauron’s age is, by design, virtually impossible. The Third Age lasted around 3000 years, the Second around 3400, and the solar part of the First Age lasted 590 years. Before that, the Valian years (which J.R.R. Tolkien altered the length of several times, creating more confusion) lasted approximately 34,000 years, making Sauron and his ilk at least 54,000 years old. However, Sauron lived in the Timeless Halls before the creation of Eä and the start of the fictional calendar, so Sauron’s true age is infinitely higher.

…Sauron is diminished beyond all possible chance of returning when the One Ring is finally smelted…

And while it’s natural to stop counting Sauron’s age after his defeat in Lord of the Rings, even that isn’t truly accurate. Although Sauron is diminished beyond all possible chance of returning when the One Ring is finally smelted in Mount Doom, his spirit still technically exists, floating around the ether. The Dark Lord continues to linger in some form until the silence comes once again. Halbrand really wasn’t exaggerating in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.