An inquiry into the material culture of the Snow Elves.

I've been thinking a lot about the Snow Elves lately and how little we seem to know about them. I was quite pleased to see much of the lore surrounding the ancient Snow Elf civilization expanded upon during the Dawnguard expansion, however there are still many questions. Based on the little we have seen or heard of their race before their enslavement by the Dwemer I am having difficulty picturing what their society must have actually looked like. Some pertinent questions I have:

• Did they built great cities?
• What did their economy look like?
• Were there subcultures or regional variations? Different tribes perhaps?
• How widespread were they in Skyrim? Did they spread as far south as Falkreath or as far west as the Reach for example?
• Was there a caste system or social stratification of some kind?
• What where their marriage practices like?
• What type of clothing did they wear?
• What did their diet consist of?
• Did they have contact with the other races of Mer such as the Chimer or the Ayleids? etc.

These are only a few of the questions I have that would hopefully paint a clearer picture of Snow Elf society in the Merethic Era, and while concrete answers may elude us I am more than happy to hear any conjecture or headcanon on the matter. To help get the discussion going I would first like to establish what we do know of the Snow Elves. Though we are uncertain exactly when they separated from the ancient Aldmer it is widely believed that they are a direct offshoot in the same vein as the Ayleids and the Chimer. In Skyrim their civilization is described as once being a wealthy and prosperous society. We do not have much in the way of a clear timeline, and events only seem to fall into place with the arrival of the Atmorans. As I'm sure we all know by now an initial peaceful coexistence between the Atmorans and the Snow Elves was broken on the "Night of Tears" when the Elves sacked Saarthal. We learn from Knight-Paladin Gelebor that the Snow Elves held an "uneasy alliance" with the Dwemer, and that the surviving Snow Elves made the pact to become blind slaves to the Dwemer willingly in order to avoid extinction. Interestingly he notes that the elves that refused to make the pact and sought alliances elsewhere were met with failure, and wound up either slaughtered or missing. This indicates that the Snow Elves were at the very least conscious of the other civilizations of Mer, though ultimately they must not have had particularly strong ties.

We know from The Fall of the Snow Prince that the last organized resistance of the Snow Elves was on Solstheim, and that their fate was ultimately decided at the Battle of the Moesring, but there are a couple of interesting minor details about the Snow Prince that I think possibly reveal a bit more about the material society of the Snow Elves. The Snow Prince arrives on the battlefield riding a "brilliant steed of pallid white", and his spear and armor bore the "radiant glow of unknown magicka". In regards to the evident powerful use of magic, this does seem to be something that the Snow Elves like their Aldmer ancestors had an affinity for. What role it played in their society is unclear, however based on what we learned in Dawnguard the Snow Elves worshiped Auri-El above all other gods and had a special reverence for the sun, preferring to draw power from the light.

More interesting to me is the white horse upon which the Snow Prince rode, as it is the only reference I am aware of to horsemanship among the elves, and the only reference to a domesticated creature in the context of the Merethic Era Snow Elves. It is a minor detail to be sure, and could possibly even be a Nordic dramatization, but if we take this as fact I think it has an interesting implication, namely that many of the domestic creatures we see in Skyrim today including highland cows, horses, and perhaps even dogs could have potentially been domesticated first by the Snow Elves. As far as I am aware we have no knowledge of any domesticated animals that the Nords brought with them from Atmora, and many of the in-game creatures such as the highland cows and the sturdy, thickly coated horses seem to be perfectly adapted to the landscape of Skyrim. Perhaps the Snow Elves farmed and herded these beasts? Perhaps after conquering them the Nords took many of these creatures for themselves and continued the farming traditions practiced by the Snow Elves? I suspect that in terms of the structure of their society the Snow Elves were very close to the Aldmer. They worshiped many of the same gods with some major differences such as the centrality of Auri-El to their faith. Knight-Paladin Gelebor reveals that Trinimac, Syrabane, Jephre, and Phynaster were also worshiped in the Falmer pantheon. Religion seems to have been central in Snow Elf society as is evidenced by the great Chantry of Auri-El and the various wayshrines and monuments, all of which seem to be the only remaining examples of Snow Elf architecture. An interesting side-note here, but the masonry and architectural motifs utilized by the Falmer appear similar to those of the Ayleid ruins found in Cyrodiil, particularly the style of the archways.

We also know that similarly to religious practices in Morrowind there was a process of pilgrimage which was said to result in enlightenment. This process involved initiates visiting the various wayshrines, each tended by a Prelate, who was responsible for instructing pilgrims in the mantras of Auri-El. Each pilgrim would fill a Ewer with water from the central basin of each wayshrine after performing a mantra, and once their enlightenment was complete they would bring the Ewer to the Chantry's Inner Sanctum where they would pour its contents into the sacred basin, granting them access to the temple where they could meet with the Arch-Curate, thus completing the journey. Finally on the appearance of the Snow Elves themselves, they appear to be physically similar to Altmer but with white hair and skin. We do not see any examples of untainted Snow Elf women in-game, and while we do have an example of what Snow Elf armor looks like, we have no clear examples of what type of civilian dress they wore save for [this statue in Irkngthand] (http://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/elderscrolls/images/7/78/Irkngthand_Snow_Elf_Statue_Render.png/revision/latest?cb=20151217195037). It is unclear who the statue is supposed to represent, or if it is an idealization rather than a realistic depiction. The statue reminds me of Buddhist or Hindu art as far as the pose and the portrayal are concerned. The man appears to be wearing a simple robe with some adornments, and he is holding what appears to be a torch and a book. I always inferred that this statue was religious in some way, perhaps depicting a priest or saint if the Snow Elves had such things. The armor of the Snow Elves is highly reminiscent of Altmer armor in terms of its shape and design. In-game the armor can be upgraded using moonstone which is a good indicator of the materials the Snow Elves must have favored.

In any case I'm sure there may be some additional information that I have missed but this post is long enough as it is. What are your thoughts on the Snow Elves? Do you have any interesting ideas about what their society was like? I'd love to hear what others think on this subject.