Post by ryanbarnes13 on Sept 20, 2020 22:51:52 GMT
Jon’s Looks Part 1
Part of the issue of recognizing Jon’s parentage has always been the lack of Targaryen history. Look back at the main series. You are inundated with silver-blonde haired and indigo, lilac, violet, amethyst colored purple eyes....
These beliefs in What a character SHOULD look like, hinder us in our theory crafting of who Jon snow is and our beliefs of who the real Aegon Targaryen is.
One of the biggest issues is Martins own words to us. Rhaenys looked like a Martell. Aegon looked like a Targaryen.... on the surface it is a perfect answer, obviously Aegon was silver haired, purple eyed......because the Targaryens we know are silver haired/purple eyed.... Dany, Viserys, Rhaegar, Rhaella, Aerys....
Here is the SSM in question:
AUGUST 26, 2000
A NUMBER OF QUESTIONS
Q: Do you have any idea what Rhaenys and Aegon looked like? (Hair color, eye color, etc.)
A: Rhaenys looked more like a Martell, Aegon more a Targaryen.
(Notice the key word here- more like a Martell.... more a Targaryen...
You see these words to describe a character in the books. Jon Snow. He looks more like Ned than the Tully looking sons of Ned......)
But there is two huge problem with the answer, it was given before ADWD, meaning FAegon, who let’s be real, has to have the Targ classic coloring or we would never even consider him possible... as Tyrion says, he looks 15-16... Dany’s age. Meaning he was born in 284... not 281.....
Tyrion only gets two ages blatantly wrong. With two characters who he should know EXACTLY what year they were born in and their age. FAegon, Aegons birth wasn’t a secret. 281. After Harrenhall, and before Roberts Rebellion.... The second is Jon Snow, which everyone on the dang continent who is even half important knows is Ned’s one blemish, born after Ned’s marriage DURING the Rebellion. So why think Jon is 12? Jofferys age? Tyrion can’t help but know this is false...
The other issue with the SSM on Aegons parentage is two fold, the person asked the right question, but lacked the knowledge Fire and Blood gives us. Martin never answered the hair/eye color, skin tone, ect... and as we didn’t know there was Targaryens with brown hair/brown eyes; dark haired/ purple eyed; He answered correctly.
The point is THEY ALL LOOK LIKE Targaryens.....
Martin even gives us a historical example of a Targaryen who is the child of a Targaryen father/Martell mother- who is almost a copy of Jon in some aspects.
Prince Baelor Breakspear- son of King Daeron 2 Targaryen and Myriah Martell.
Prince Baelor had the DARK HAIR of his mother, Myriah Martell, a Dornish princess. He kept it cut short and kept his jaw clean-shaven.[1] His nose had been broken twice.[1]
A warrior, Baelor seemed to be all that could be wished in a knight, lord, or heir. He was a man who could win respect with ease, and he was as open-handed and just as his father, King Daeron II Targaryen.[5] Baelor treated honorable foes with clemency.[2]
However, many men looked upon Baelor's DARK HAIR AND EYES and muttered that he was more Martell than Targaryen.[5] Some Blackfyre sympathizers also were bothered by his namesake, Baelor the Blessed, "the feeblest king who ever sat the Iron Throne".[2]
Now what is Jon, dark haired, dark eyed (seemed black), darker skinned than the other Starks.... but what are we describing? A Targaryen.
What are the Martells defining features? That most share? Black hair, black eyes, widows peak, Olive skin
Jon is in between on most of these aspects. Dark brown hair, grey eyes so dark they seem black (black amethyst eyes), no widows peak, skin like Nymeria Sand, pale milk compared to Martells, dark where Robb is fair skinned compared to Starks.
As for the first men choices of Jon, he gives us an example there too Prince Daeron Targaryen, son of King Maekar Targaryen and Dyanna Dayne....
Daeron had sallow skin, sandy brown hair and a blonde beard.[4] He was not much of a knight, disliking horses and swords.[4]
This is nothing like Jon at all. Sandy brown hair, blonde beard...
As for sallow skin it’s a yellowish skin tone. Usually unhealthy. Notice this guy is known as Daeron the Drunken. Point is it’s not dark where Robb is fair... and this is first men parentage same as the common theories of Jon’s parentage. R+L especially. Or even B+A or N+A.
The eyes too dark, the hair too dark, skin too dark.... except from the Martell/Targaryen lineage. Coincidence? I think not.
The Targaryens breed true to a large degree as far as we know. Where it gets interesting is when in the later generations there is one Targaryen parent, one non-Targaryen parent.
From those unions the children do not all have the common Targaryen looks of silver/blonde hair purple colored eyes. There is also a belief that is in the fandom that it’s only the first born that looks like the non-Targaryen parent overall.
This is actually not true as we have examples of all 3 children of a Targaryen parent/Other parentage, all having the same non Targaryen look. The other main point is we only know some of the looks of some of the children of the later generations. Most are not described due to dying young, stillborn, or within a year or so, or otherwise not being important to the story.
The best example is the first half of the Dance in Fire and Blood. First up is Queen Rhaenyra herself, by the first born theory she should not look like a Targaryen. She should look like her mother... in this case Aemma Arryn of House Arryn. But she looks has the classical Targaryen looks.
Rhaenyra had her family's Valyrian looks, wearing her silver-gold hair in a long braid in the manner of Queen Visenya Targaryen.[7] Beautiful as a child,[8] Rhaenyra was later declared by her uncle, Prince Daemon Targaryen, to be the most beautiful maiden in all the Seven Kingdoms.[4]
All three oldest children of Queen Rhaenyra, Prince Jacaerys, Prince Lucerys, and Prince Joffery Velaryon.... ALL three are brown haired, brown eyed... It’s important to differentiate between the children born from her first marriage (and affair with the Strong from the Riverlands), and her second marriage to her uncle, Prince Daemon Targaryen which produced the classic Targaryen children.
Prince Jacaerys-
Like his brothers, Lucerys and Joffrey, he had brown hair and eyes, and a pug nose. This made many at court suspect that Ser Harwin Strong, the sworn shield of Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen, was the brothers' true father.[1][4]
The birth order and looks DOES NOT matter in our quest to find out the real Aegon.... nor are these children not true Targaryens. As 3 eggs were placed in their cradles as was custom, and all three hatched.
“By royal decree, each of the Velaryon boys was presented with a dragon’s egg whilst in the cradle. Those who doubted the paternity of Rhaenyra’s sons whispered that the eggs would never hatch, but the birth in turn of three young dragons gave the lie to their words. The hatchlings were named Vermax, Arrax, and Tyraxes.”
Fire and Blood
What is interesting is their eyes. Yes, they have brown eyes, Jon is supposedly grey eyed. But notice the difference, Jon’s grey eyes are so dark they seemed almost black..... these are not his parents eyes..... as the Velaryon boys, if you do a search of grey eyes in the search tools, not a single pair of grey eyes in the story are so dark they look black.....
Martin even goes out of his way to give us the shades of many duel grey-other color eyes and how the grey eyes look.... Petyr- grey-green. Benjen- Blue-grey. A Frey- Watery grey eyes. Maester Luwin- bright grey eyes. See Mandon- pale grey, oddly flat and lifeless.
Ned- soft as fog, hard as stone. Brandon- cool grey eyes.
Not one of these has grey eyes that look black. But in Fire and Blood at the end of the Dance we indeed see a color of eyes that DO LOOK BLACK, and are MISTAKEN FOR BLACK EYES..... based on color of clothes, and light conditions.....
The last key detail from the Dance is the aftermath. Queen Rhaenyra’s trueborn son with her Targaryen uncle, Prince Daemon Targaryen, namely King Aegon 3 Targaryen.
Aegon 3, while having the Targaryen looks, has eyes that are almost a perfect copy of Jon Snow eyes... with dark purple eyes which looked almost black. Sorry, grey eyes do not look almost black. But if you are saying the child is yours, you say he has grey eyes.
Now I’m no genius, but compare Jon’s eyes to the other Starks eyes...
Benjen- blue-grey eyes
Lyanna- grey eyed like Aryas and Ned’s.
Brandon- cool grey eyes
Eddard- the darkest eyed... dark grey eyes that reflect his moods, turning soft as fog or hard as stone.
Arya- grey eyed
And Jon Snow- grey eyed so dark they seem black.
Not one of these true Starks is a grey so dark they seem black. Indeed the closest is Eddards, and his that turn soft as fog, or hard as stone is also nowhere near black.
If you don’t believe me, you can look up Shades of Gray in Wikipedia, and then Cool Grays subgroup. And you find every description associated with the stark eyes. And they are all a version of blue-grey..... Benjens blue-grey, Brandon’s cool grey eyed, and Ned’s grey eyes soft as fog, hard as stone.
Indeed the only truly dark eyes that seem black only appear in one family, the Targaryens. And it’s a purple so dark they seem black. Not grey..... Especially in low light, like a fire, nighttime, or when the character is dressed in all black. We’ve seen Jon’s true eye colors in the stories before.
Basically real quickly, Ned said Jon is his son for all to hear, and everybody just assumes the eyes that seem black are a grey that looks black as starks are grey eyed.... because honestly, their is no mother to compare eyes too... except whispers of Ashara, who was purple eyed.... hint hint, wink wink.... purple eyes....
But I digress....
King Aegon 3 Targaryen- Aegon was a handsome boy[12] with dark purple eyes which looked almost black, and silver hair which was so pale that it was almost white.[1][7] He was lean of face and body.[12] By the age of ten, Aegon was considered tall for his age.[7] According to a semi-canon source, Aegon wore a short beard.[13]
Aegon dressed simply, and in black (always, according to Maester Yandel,[14] most oft according to Archmaester Gyldayn).[7] Under his velvets and satins, he would wear a hair shirt.[7] He wore a circlet of yellow gold, simple and unadorned.[12]
And If you look up purple eyes in the wiki you discover this....
The famed Targaryen eye color can be revealing when a member of the family is trying to be incognito. Prince Aegon Targaryen, while serving as a squire toSer Duncan the Tall under the name "Egg", shaved his head so that his silver-gold hair would not be recognized. His deep purple eyes could not be disguised, though in dim light they looked black.[2] Daemon II Blackfyre, incognito as the hedge knight "John the Fiddler", wore blue clothing to help make his purple eyes look blue.[3]
This is now two Targaryen kings who have purple eyes that look black when wearing black clothing, or in low light.... light at night, or by a fire..... the Jon and Tyrion scenes....
One more example-
Daemon 2 Blackfyre....
He had collar-length black hair and eyes that caught the deep blue of his doublet; Dunk noted he had "Egg's eyes". After revealing himself as the son of Daemon I Blackfyre, Daemon the Younger washed the black dye from his hair to reveal its silver-gold color.
Dunk noted he had “Egg’s eyes”. Meaning eyes that in dim light look black.
So what is this eye color that we see is a Targaryen eye color? We actually have it appear in the main series also. Over and over to one Stark daughter, who could very well be the one to notice it in Jon’s eyes as they are on a path to meet due to the loan for food Jon gets in ADWD and planning to buy grain from the Vale, and the Sansa Vale plotline in TWOW sample chapter, which covers the Vale lords and Petyr plotting over selling food while the last contestants arrive for the tourney....
This dark purple which looks almost black is actually the rarest form of Amethyst, Black Amethyst out of Ass’hai. We learn all about it in King’s Landing during Sansa’s chapters.
It was a hair net of fine-spun silver, the strands so thin and delicate the net seemed to weigh no more than a breath of air when Sansa took it in her fingers. Small gems were set wherever two strands crossed, so dark they drank the moonlight. "What stones are these?"
"Black amethysts from Asshai. The rarest kind, a deep true purple by daylight."
"It's very lovely," Sansa said, thinking, It is a ship I need, not a net for my hair.
ACOK Sansa 8
Sansa pulled away from his touch. "You said I must wear the hair net. The silver net with . . . what sort of stones are those?"
"Amethysts. Black amethysts from Asshai, my lady."
"They're no amethysts. Are they? Are they? You lied."
Black amethysts," he swore. "There was magic in them."
"There was murder in them!"
ASOS Sansa 5
And yes I left out several other times they are mentioned... the point is Black Amethysts are very much stuck in Sansa mind now. The exact shade, how they look in light, and shadow...
Aegon 3, Aegon 5, Daemon 2 all have one thing in common. They have Jon’s true eyes. And it’s by and large prove able.... during King Roberts visit, and during Areo Hotah’s chapters. And with the information from Sansa’s chapters.
Keep this in your mind....
"Black amethysts from Asshai. The rarest kind, a deep true purple by daylight." It is the answer to why Jon was hid during Roberts visit at the beginning of the book. Remember, supposedly Jon looks like a Stark, eyes like a Stark, Long face like a stark..... and yet Jon is never seen except for the initial greeting, hidden in the back ranks where he is ignored, and present at the feast.
But first, we need to establish the light during the visit. Remember Jon’s eyes can only truly be noticeable purple during the daytime. In low light, nighttime, campfires, torches they look black.... "Black amethysts from Asshai. The rarest kind, a deep true purple by daylight."
Now the weather at winterfell......
And we all know this passage, it’s used to say Jon is a king foreshadowing, but it should be seen as what it is.... summer snow. Winter. Low light, cloud cover.
Where are all your people?” “Likely they were too shy to come out,” Ned jested. He could feel the chill coming up the stairs, a cold breath from deep within the earth. “Kings are a rare sight in the north.” Robert snorted. “More likely they were hiding under the snow. Snow, Ned!” The king put one hand on the wall to steady himself as they descended. “Late summer snows are common enough,” Ned said. “I hope they did not trouble you. They are usually mild.” “The Others take your mild snows,” Robert swore. “What will this place be like in winter? I shudder to think.” “The winters are hard,” Ned admitted. “But the Starks will endure. We always have.””
And when they find the direwolf pups it had been snowing recently, and when Ned bows when Robert and Cercei arrive he kneels in the snow. Meaning it has recently snowed. SUMMER SNOWS..... So cloudy, at the least more than likely fresh snow as this is in the summer, in the middle of the courtyard. A highly trafficked area where the snow would not last long. Especially with frantic preparations for a royal arrival....
Basically it is not nice and bright like it is in the south. Robert waxes poetic over it and what’s good in life....
You need to come south," Robert told him. "You need a taste of summer before it flees. In Highgarden there are fields of golden roses that stretch away as far as the eye can see. The fruits are so ripe they explode in your mouth—melons, peaches, fireplums, you've never tasted such sweetness. You'll see, I brought you some. Even at Storm's End, with that good wind off the bay, the days are so hot you can barely move. And you ought to see the towns, Ned! Flowers everywhere, the markets bursting with food, the summerwines so cheap and so good that you can get drunk just breathing the air. Everyone is fat and drunk and rich." He laughed and slapped his own ample stomach a thump. "And the girls, Ned!" he exclaimed, his eyes sparkling. "I swear, women lose all modesty in the heat. They swim naked in the river, right beneath the castle. Even in the streets, it's too damn hot for wool or fur, so they go around in these short gowns, silk if they have the silver and cotton if not, but it's all the same when they start sweating and the cloth sticks to their skin, they might as well be naked." The king laughed happily.
AGOT Eddard 1
And we have the snows all the way to the very end of the visit. So it’s cloudy, dim light, all the way through roughly..., The famous snow melting in Robb’s hair....
I know," Jon said. "Soon." He looked around at all the noise and confusion. "Leaving is harder than I thought."
"For me too," Robb said. He had snow in his hair, melting from the heat of his body. "Did you see him?"
Jon nodded, not trusting himself to speak.
AGOT Jon 2
She had last seen snow the day she'd left Winterfell. That was a lighter fall than this, she remembered. Robb had melting flakes in his hair when he hugged me, and the snowball Arya tried to make kept coming apart in her hands. It hurt to remember how happy she had been that morning. Hullen had helped her mount, and she'd ridden out with the snowflakes swirling around her, off to see the great wide world. I thought my song was beginning that day, but it was almost done.
ASOS Sansa 7
Just two examples, but the point is clear, it snowed all through the visit. Enough for snowball fights, on the last day even with it being a light snow that day....
So what is the sun like that far north? What would the light be like truly compared to say, anything south? We are given the answer several books in. From Areo Hotah, who lived in northern Essos, and Dorne.
And the Dornish sun was hotter than the pale, wan sun of Norvos, glaring down from a blue sky day after day.”
AFFC Ch 2 The Captain of Guards
The pale, wan sun of Norvos.... if you look at the map of the Free Cities in ADWD, you can see where it is in relation to westeros. Norvos is about equally north as Claw Isle off the Crackclaw Point, south of The Bay of Crabs and the Fingers... also roughly as far north as the Trident... meaning no where near as far North as Jon lives. And the sun is pale and wan even there.
How does weather in the south and north tie into how Jon’s eyes are hid? Since everyone believes they are grey, but so dark they appear black....
I was asked how no one at the wall, especially Ser Alliser Thorne would not notice Jon’s looks. And the simple answer is 1. the shadows at Castle Black, 2. The constant snows with intermittent sunny days, 3. Dressed all in black, which makes the eyes look black, Aegon 3 once again...
For the first item, here is Jon’s own thoughts...
The air smelled of paper and dust and years. Before him, tall wooden shelves rose up into dimness, crammed with leatherbound books and bins of ancient scrolls. A faint yellow glow filtered through the stacks from some hidden lamp. Jon blew out the taper he carried, preferring not to risk an open flame amidst so much old dry paper. Instead he followed the light, wending his way down the narrow aisles beneath barrel-vaulted ceilings. All in black, he was a shadow among shadows, dark of hair, long of face, grey of eye. Black moleskin gloves covered his hands; the right because it was burned, the left because a man felt half a fool wearing only one glove.
ACOK Jon 1
All in black, a shadow among shadows.... you see the phrase a shadow among shadows over and over in relation to Jon. But Castle Black is dark and gloomy. It’s not well lit, and the black brothers don’t look at peoples eyes. They almost missed the fact that the two dead wights had blue eyes.... even though they knew them for years...
And remember Aegon 5, and Daemon 2, His deep purple eyes could not be disguised, though in dim light they looked black.[2] Torchlight. The only source of light is fire. So yes it is dimly lit....
For the second reason, look up snowflakes melting, and you find that almost all the times Jon is truly out and about it is snowing, or almost ready to snow.... with Tormund, with Alys Karstark wedding, as they let the wildlings through the wall.... it’s cold, cloudy, snow weather.....
Jon himself gives us the third answer when he is talking to Robb.
Robb looked relieved. "Good." He smiled. "The next time I see you, you'll be all in black."
Jon forced himself to smile back. "It was always my color. How long do you think it will be?"
"Soon enough," Robb promised. He pulled Jon to him and embraced him fiercely. "Farewell, Snow."
AGOT Jon 2
Black was always Jon’s color...... Aegon 3 Targaryen....
and Black amethysts from Asshai. The rarest kind, a deep true purple by daylight."
Now think about those three kings, and how they hid their eye color.... clothes, and amounts of light. Aegon 3- dressed all in black. Aegon 5- His deep purple eyes could not be disguised, though in dim light they looked black. Daemon 2- Daemon II Blackfyre, incognito as the hedge knight "John the Fiddler", wore blue clothing to help make his purple eyes look blue.[3]
Now look at Jon. He is there in the second row. Standing beside a hostage, and a maester. He is almost invisible..... and what happens during the three main events?
Jon is not allowed in the training yards... why? Because as a bastard he can’t fight the prince.... apart from being a lie, who says he can only be there if he fights the prince? Theon is there, Robb is there.
And then we have the hunt. Once again, Theon the hostage goes, Benjen goes, hell even Tyrion goes. But once again Jon is not allowed to go. But this is during the day once again.
Now look at the feast, Jon is sitting at the lower table, in the less important side of the hall, but so close to the procession that they pass within a foot of him. Now if you are hiding Jon as we see Ned did.... why in the hell would you have him sitting right beside where they walk in? In perfect view?
He settled back in his place on the bench among the younger squires and drank. The sweet, fruity taste of summerwine filled his mouth and brought a smile to his lips. The Great Hall of Winterfell was hazy with smoke and heavy with the smell of roasted meat and fresh-baked bread....
Jon 1 AGOT
He had sated his curiosity about the visitors when they made their entrance. The procession had passed not a foot from the place he had been given on the bench, and Jon had gotten a good long look at them all.”
Jon 1 AGOT
Think about that for a second, the kid your secretly hiding from the king, from the queen, you do not allow to be seen around the visitors during their stay, you let sit not a foot from the procession.....
You can because it is night time. It’s dark outside, it’s dim inside with just torches and fires to brighten the feast hall. And full of smoke... And once again, we are brought back to Aegon 5 eyes. His deep purple eyes could not be disguised, though in dim light they looked black.[2] Jon is not in danger of being recognized. His eyes look black.... so he is allowed to join. At night.
Now at the feast we are given a final clue that Jon’s grey eyes are not truly Stark eyes. At the feast we are given our first introduction to Benjen Stark. Remember Benjen has BLUE-GREY EYES.
Now remember Jon’s eyes, a grey so dark that they seemed black. Benjen who is dressed all in black as befitted a man of the Nights Watch, still has eyes that still look blue-grey.
His stark eyes are not darkening or lightening based on his clothes. His eyes are still blue-grey. They are nothing like Jon’s.
But what do we see with one bloodline?
Dany-
Dany touched it. The cloth was so smooth that it seemed to run through her fingers like water. She could not remember ever wearing anything so soft. It frightened her. She pulled her hand away. "Is it really mine?"
"A gift from the Magister Illyrio," Viserys said, smiling. Her brother was in a high mood tonight. "The color will bring out the violet in your eyes. And you shall have gold as well, and jewels of all sorts. Illyrio has promised. Tonight you must look like a princess."
AGOT Dany 1
They dressed her in the wisps that Magister Illyrio had sent up, and then the gown, a deep plum silk to bring out the violet in her eyes.
AGOT Dany 1
She had chosen a Qartheen gown today. The deep violet silk brought out the purple of her eyes.
ASOS Dany 3
And historical ones, Aegon 3, Aegon 5, Daemon 2.....
Aegon was a handsome boy[12] with dark purple eyes which looked almost black
His deep purple eyes could not be disguised, though in dim light they looked black. Daemon 2- Daemon II Blackfyre, incognito as the hedge knight "John the Fiddler", wore blue clothing to help make his purple eyes look blue.[3]
But doesn’t Jon look just like Arya? Like Ned? So why would he be hidden away ONLY during the day??????
The famed Targaryen eye color can be revealing when a member of the family is trying to be incognito......
Because he does not truly look like a Stark. Unless you compare him to his brothers. Which we will discuss in the next part.
Part of the issue of recognizing Jon’s parentage has always been the lack of Targaryen history. Look back at the main series. You are inundated with silver-blonde haired and indigo, lilac, violet, amethyst colored purple eyes....
These beliefs in What a character SHOULD look like, hinder us in our theory crafting of who Jon snow is and our beliefs of who the real Aegon Targaryen is.
One of the biggest issues is Martins own words to us. Rhaenys looked like a Martell. Aegon looked like a Targaryen.... on the surface it is a perfect answer, obviously Aegon was silver haired, purple eyed......because the Targaryens we know are silver haired/purple eyed.... Dany, Viserys, Rhaegar, Rhaella, Aerys....
Here is the SSM in question:
AUGUST 26, 2000
A NUMBER OF QUESTIONS
Q: Do you have any idea what Rhaenys and Aegon looked like? (Hair color, eye color, etc.)
A: Rhaenys looked more like a Martell, Aegon more a Targaryen.
(Notice the key word here- more like a Martell.... more a Targaryen...
You see these words to describe a character in the books. Jon Snow. He looks more like Ned than the Tully looking sons of Ned......)
But there is two huge problem with the answer, it was given before ADWD, meaning FAegon, who let’s be real, has to have the Targ classic coloring or we would never even consider him possible... as Tyrion says, he looks 15-16... Dany’s age. Meaning he was born in 284... not 281.....
Tyrion only gets two ages blatantly wrong. With two characters who he should know EXACTLY what year they were born in and their age. FAegon, Aegons birth wasn’t a secret. 281. After Harrenhall, and before Roberts Rebellion.... The second is Jon Snow, which everyone on the dang continent who is even half important knows is Ned’s one blemish, born after Ned’s marriage DURING the Rebellion. So why think Jon is 12? Jofferys age? Tyrion can’t help but know this is false...
The other issue with the SSM on Aegons parentage is two fold, the person asked the right question, but lacked the knowledge Fire and Blood gives us. Martin never answered the hair/eye color, skin tone, ect... and as we didn’t know there was Targaryens with brown hair/brown eyes; dark haired/ purple eyed; He answered correctly.
The point is THEY ALL LOOK LIKE Targaryens.....
Martin even gives us a historical example of a Targaryen who is the child of a Targaryen father/Martell mother- who is almost a copy of Jon in some aspects.
Prince Baelor Breakspear- son of King Daeron 2 Targaryen and Myriah Martell.
Prince Baelor had the DARK HAIR of his mother, Myriah Martell, a Dornish princess. He kept it cut short and kept his jaw clean-shaven.[1] His nose had been broken twice.[1]
A warrior, Baelor seemed to be all that could be wished in a knight, lord, or heir. He was a man who could win respect with ease, and he was as open-handed and just as his father, King Daeron II Targaryen.[5] Baelor treated honorable foes with clemency.[2]
However, many men looked upon Baelor's DARK HAIR AND EYES and muttered that he was more Martell than Targaryen.[5] Some Blackfyre sympathizers also were bothered by his namesake, Baelor the Blessed, "the feeblest king who ever sat the Iron Throne".[2]
Now what is Jon, dark haired, dark eyed (seemed black), darker skinned than the other Starks.... but what are we describing? A Targaryen.
What are the Martells defining features? That most share? Black hair, black eyes, widows peak, Olive skin
Jon is in between on most of these aspects. Dark brown hair, grey eyes so dark they seem black (black amethyst eyes), no widows peak, skin like Nymeria Sand, pale milk compared to Martells, dark where Robb is fair skinned compared to Starks.
As for the first men choices of Jon, he gives us an example there too Prince Daeron Targaryen, son of King Maekar Targaryen and Dyanna Dayne....
Daeron had sallow skin, sandy brown hair and a blonde beard.[4] He was not much of a knight, disliking horses and swords.[4]
This is nothing like Jon at all. Sandy brown hair, blonde beard...
As for sallow skin it’s a yellowish skin tone. Usually unhealthy. Notice this guy is known as Daeron the Drunken. Point is it’s not dark where Robb is fair... and this is first men parentage same as the common theories of Jon’s parentage. R+L especially. Or even B+A or N+A.
The eyes too dark, the hair too dark, skin too dark.... except from the Martell/Targaryen lineage. Coincidence? I think not.
The Targaryens breed true to a large degree as far as we know. Where it gets interesting is when in the later generations there is one Targaryen parent, one non-Targaryen parent.
From those unions the children do not all have the common Targaryen looks of silver/blonde hair purple colored eyes. There is also a belief that is in the fandom that it’s only the first born that looks like the non-Targaryen parent overall.
This is actually not true as we have examples of all 3 children of a Targaryen parent/Other parentage, all having the same non Targaryen look. The other main point is we only know some of the looks of some of the children of the later generations. Most are not described due to dying young, stillborn, or within a year or so, or otherwise not being important to the story.
The best example is the first half of the Dance in Fire and Blood. First up is Queen Rhaenyra herself, by the first born theory she should not look like a Targaryen. She should look like her mother... in this case Aemma Arryn of House Arryn. But she looks has the classical Targaryen looks.
Rhaenyra had her family's Valyrian looks, wearing her silver-gold hair in a long braid in the manner of Queen Visenya Targaryen.[7] Beautiful as a child,[8] Rhaenyra was later declared by her uncle, Prince Daemon Targaryen, to be the most beautiful maiden in all the Seven Kingdoms.[4]
All three oldest children of Queen Rhaenyra, Prince Jacaerys, Prince Lucerys, and Prince Joffery Velaryon.... ALL three are brown haired, brown eyed... It’s important to differentiate between the children born from her first marriage (and affair with the Strong from the Riverlands), and her second marriage to her uncle, Prince Daemon Targaryen which produced the classic Targaryen children.
Prince Jacaerys-
Like his brothers, Lucerys and Joffrey, he had brown hair and eyes, and a pug nose. This made many at court suspect that Ser Harwin Strong, the sworn shield of Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen, was the brothers' true father.[1][4]
The birth order and looks DOES NOT matter in our quest to find out the real Aegon.... nor are these children not true Targaryens. As 3 eggs were placed in their cradles as was custom, and all three hatched.
“By royal decree, each of the Velaryon boys was presented with a dragon’s egg whilst in the cradle. Those who doubted the paternity of Rhaenyra’s sons whispered that the eggs would never hatch, but the birth in turn of three young dragons gave the lie to their words. The hatchlings were named Vermax, Arrax, and Tyraxes.”
Fire and Blood
What is interesting is their eyes. Yes, they have brown eyes, Jon is supposedly grey eyed. But notice the difference, Jon’s grey eyes are so dark they seemed almost black..... these are not his parents eyes..... as the Velaryon boys, if you do a search of grey eyes in the search tools, not a single pair of grey eyes in the story are so dark they look black.....
Martin even goes out of his way to give us the shades of many duel grey-other color eyes and how the grey eyes look.... Petyr- grey-green. Benjen- Blue-grey. A Frey- Watery grey eyes. Maester Luwin- bright grey eyes. See Mandon- pale grey, oddly flat and lifeless.
Ned- soft as fog, hard as stone. Brandon- cool grey eyes.
Not one of these has grey eyes that look black. But in Fire and Blood at the end of the Dance we indeed see a color of eyes that DO LOOK BLACK, and are MISTAKEN FOR BLACK EYES..... based on color of clothes, and light conditions.....
The last key detail from the Dance is the aftermath. Queen Rhaenyra’s trueborn son with her Targaryen uncle, Prince Daemon Targaryen, namely King Aegon 3 Targaryen.
Aegon 3, while having the Targaryen looks, has eyes that are almost a perfect copy of Jon Snow eyes... with dark purple eyes which looked almost black. Sorry, grey eyes do not look almost black. But if you are saying the child is yours, you say he has grey eyes.
Now I’m no genius, but compare Jon’s eyes to the other Starks eyes...
Benjen- blue-grey eyes
Lyanna- grey eyed like Aryas and Ned’s.
Brandon- cool grey eyes
Eddard- the darkest eyed... dark grey eyes that reflect his moods, turning soft as fog or hard as stone.
Arya- grey eyed
And Jon Snow- grey eyed so dark they seem black.
Not one of these true Starks is a grey so dark they seem black. Indeed the closest is Eddards, and his that turn soft as fog, or hard as stone is also nowhere near black.
If you don’t believe me, you can look up Shades of Gray in Wikipedia, and then Cool Grays subgroup. And you find every description associated with the stark eyes. And they are all a version of blue-grey..... Benjens blue-grey, Brandon’s cool grey eyed, and Ned’s grey eyes soft as fog, hard as stone.
Indeed the only truly dark eyes that seem black only appear in one family, the Targaryens. And it’s a purple so dark they seem black. Not grey..... Especially in low light, like a fire, nighttime, or when the character is dressed in all black. We’ve seen Jon’s true eye colors in the stories before.
Basically real quickly, Ned said Jon is his son for all to hear, and everybody just assumes the eyes that seem black are a grey that looks black as starks are grey eyed.... because honestly, their is no mother to compare eyes too... except whispers of Ashara, who was purple eyed.... hint hint, wink wink.... purple eyes....
But I digress....
King Aegon 3 Targaryen- Aegon was a handsome boy[12] with dark purple eyes which looked almost black, and silver hair which was so pale that it was almost white.[1][7] He was lean of face and body.[12] By the age of ten, Aegon was considered tall for his age.[7] According to a semi-canon source, Aegon wore a short beard.[13]
Aegon dressed simply, and in black (always, according to Maester Yandel,[14] most oft according to Archmaester Gyldayn).[7] Under his velvets and satins, he would wear a hair shirt.[7] He wore a circlet of yellow gold, simple and unadorned.[12]
And If you look up purple eyes in the wiki you discover this....
The famed Targaryen eye color can be revealing when a member of the family is trying to be incognito. Prince Aegon Targaryen, while serving as a squire toSer Duncan the Tall under the name "Egg", shaved his head so that his silver-gold hair would not be recognized. His deep purple eyes could not be disguised, though in dim light they looked black.[2] Daemon II Blackfyre, incognito as the hedge knight "John the Fiddler", wore blue clothing to help make his purple eyes look blue.[3]
This is now two Targaryen kings who have purple eyes that look black when wearing black clothing, or in low light.... light at night, or by a fire..... the Jon and Tyrion scenes....
One more example-
Daemon 2 Blackfyre....
He had collar-length black hair and eyes that caught the deep blue of his doublet; Dunk noted he had "Egg's eyes". After revealing himself as the son of Daemon I Blackfyre, Daemon the Younger washed the black dye from his hair to reveal its silver-gold color.
Dunk noted he had “Egg’s eyes”. Meaning eyes that in dim light look black.
So what is this eye color that we see is a Targaryen eye color? We actually have it appear in the main series also. Over and over to one Stark daughter, who could very well be the one to notice it in Jon’s eyes as they are on a path to meet due to the loan for food Jon gets in ADWD and planning to buy grain from the Vale, and the Sansa Vale plotline in TWOW sample chapter, which covers the Vale lords and Petyr plotting over selling food while the last contestants arrive for the tourney....
This dark purple which looks almost black is actually the rarest form of Amethyst, Black Amethyst out of Ass’hai. We learn all about it in King’s Landing during Sansa’s chapters.
It was a hair net of fine-spun silver, the strands so thin and delicate the net seemed to weigh no more than a breath of air when Sansa took it in her fingers. Small gems were set wherever two strands crossed, so dark they drank the moonlight. "What stones are these?"
"Black amethysts from Asshai. The rarest kind, a deep true purple by daylight."
"It's very lovely," Sansa said, thinking, It is a ship I need, not a net for my hair.
ACOK Sansa 8
Sansa pulled away from his touch. "You said I must wear the hair net. The silver net with . . . what sort of stones are those?"
"Amethysts. Black amethysts from Asshai, my lady."
"They're no amethysts. Are they? Are they? You lied."
Black amethysts," he swore. "There was magic in them."
"There was murder in them!"
ASOS Sansa 5
And yes I left out several other times they are mentioned... the point is Black Amethysts are very much stuck in Sansa mind now. The exact shade, how they look in light, and shadow...
Aegon 3, Aegon 5, Daemon 2 all have one thing in common. They have Jon’s true eyes. And it’s by and large prove able.... during King Roberts visit, and during Areo Hotah’s chapters. And with the information from Sansa’s chapters.
Keep this in your mind....
"Black amethysts from Asshai. The rarest kind, a deep true purple by daylight." It is the answer to why Jon was hid during Roberts visit at the beginning of the book. Remember, supposedly Jon looks like a Stark, eyes like a Stark, Long face like a stark..... and yet Jon is never seen except for the initial greeting, hidden in the back ranks where he is ignored, and present at the feast.
But first, we need to establish the light during the visit. Remember Jon’s eyes can only truly be noticeable purple during the daytime. In low light, nighttime, campfires, torches they look black.... "Black amethysts from Asshai. The rarest kind, a deep true purple by daylight."
Now the weather at winterfell......
And we all know this passage, it’s used to say Jon is a king foreshadowing, but it should be seen as what it is.... summer snow. Winter. Low light, cloud cover.
Where are all your people?” “Likely they were too shy to come out,” Ned jested. He could feel the chill coming up the stairs, a cold breath from deep within the earth. “Kings are a rare sight in the north.” Robert snorted. “More likely they were hiding under the snow. Snow, Ned!” The king put one hand on the wall to steady himself as they descended. “Late summer snows are common enough,” Ned said. “I hope they did not trouble you. They are usually mild.” “The Others take your mild snows,” Robert swore. “What will this place be like in winter? I shudder to think.” “The winters are hard,” Ned admitted. “But the Starks will endure. We always have.””
And when they find the direwolf pups it had been snowing recently, and when Ned bows when Robert and Cercei arrive he kneels in the snow. Meaning it has recently snowed. SUMMER SNOWS..... So cloudy, at the least more than likely fresh snow as this is in the summer, in the middle of the courtyard. A highly trafficked area where the snow would not last long. Especially with frantic preparations for a royal arrival....
Basically it is not nice and bright like it is in the south. Robert waxes poetic over it and what’s good in life....
You need to come south," Robert told him. "You need a taste of summer before it flees. In Highgarden there are fields of golden roses that stretch away as far as the eye can see. The fruits are so ripe they explode in your mouth—melons, peaches, fireplums, you've never tasted such sweetness. You'll see, I brought you some. Even at Storm's End, with that good wind off the bay, the days are so hot you can barely move. And you ought to see the towns, Ned! Flowers everywhere, the markets bursting with food, the summerwines so cheap and so good that you can get drunk just breathing the air. Everyone is fat and drunk and rich." He laughed and slapped his own ample stomach a thump. "And the girls, Ned!" he exclaimed, his eyes sparkling. "I swear, women lose all modesty in the heat. They swim naked in the river, right beneath the castle. Even in the streets, it's too damn hot for wool or fur, so they go around in these short gowns, silk if they have the silver and cotton if not, but it's all the same when they start sweating and the cloth sticks to their skin, they might as well be naked." The king laughed happily.
AGOT Eddard 1
And we have the snows all the way to the very end of the visit. So it’s cloudy, dim light, all the way through roughly..., The famous snow melting in Robb’s hair....
I know," Jon said. "Soon." He looked around at all the noise and confusion. "Leaving is harder than I thought."
"For me too," Robb said. He had snow in his hair, melting from the heat of his body. "Did you see him?"
Jon nodded, not trusting himself to speak.
AGOT Jon 2
She had last seen snow the day she'd left Winterfell. That was a lighter fall than this, she remembered. Robb had melting flakes in his hair when he hugged me, and the snowball Arya tried to make kept coming apart in her hands. It hurt to remember how happy she had been that morning. Hullen had helped her mount, and she'd ridden out with the snowflakes swirling around her, off to see the great wide world. I thought my song was beginning that day, but it was almost done.
ASOS Sansa 7
Just two examples, but the point is clear, it snowed all through the visit. Enough for snowball fights, on the last day even with it being a light snow that day....
So what is the sun like that far north? What would the light be like truly compared to say, anything south? We are given the answer several books in. From Areo Hotah, who lived in northern Essos, and Dorne.
And the Dornish sun was hotter than the pale, wan sun of Norvos, glaring down from a blue sky day after day.”
AFFC Ch 2 The Captain of Guards
The pale, wan sun of Norvos.... if you look at the map of the Free Cities in ADWD, you can see where it is in relation to westeros. Norvos is about equally north as Claw Isle off the Crackclaw Point, south of The Bay of Crabs and the Fingers... also roughly as far north as the Trident... meaning no where near as far North as Jon lives. And the sun is pale and wan even there.
How does weather in the south and north tie into how Jon’s eyes are hid? Since everyone believes they are grey, but so dark they appear black....
I was asked how no one at the wall, especially Ser Alliser Thorne would not notice Jon’s looks. And the simple answer is 1. the shadows at Castle Black, 2. The constant snows with intermittent sunny days, 3. Dressed all in black, which makes the eyes look black, Aegon 3 once again...
For the first item, here is Jon’s own thoughts...
The air smelled of paper and dust and years. Before him, tall wooden shelves rose up into dimness, crammed with leatherbound books and bins of ancient scrolls. A faint yellow glow filtered through the stacks from some hidden lamp. Jon blew out the taper he carried, preferring not to risk an open flame amidst so much old dry paper. Instead he followed the light, wending his way down the narrow aisles beneath barrel-vaulted ceilings. All in black, he was a shadow among shadows, dark of hair, long of face, grey of eye. Black moleskin gloves covered his hands; the right because it was burned, the left because a man felt half a fool wearing only one glove.
ACOK Jon 1
All in black, a shadow among shadows.... you see the phrase a shadow among shadows over and over in relation to Jon. But Castle Black is dark and gloomy. It’s not well lit, and the black brothers don’t look at peoples eyes. They almost missed the fact that the two dead wights had blue eyes.... even though they knew them for years...
And remember Aegon 5, and Daemon 2, His deep purple eyes could not be disguised, though in dim light they looked black.[2] Torchlight. The only source of light is fire. So yes it is dimly lit....
For the second reason, look up snowflakes melting, and you find that almost all the times Jon is truly out and about it is snowing, or almost ready to snow.... with Tormund, with Alys Karstark wedding, as they let the wildlings through the wall.... it’s cold, cloudy, snow weather.....
Jon himself gives us the third answer when he is talking to Robb.
Robb looked relieved. "Good." He smiled. "The next time I see you, you'll be all in black."
Jon forced himself to smile back. "It was always my color. How long do you think it will be?"
"Soon enough," Robb promised. He pulled Jon to him and embraced him fiercely. "Farewell, Snow."
AGOT Jon 2
Black was always Jon’s color...... Aegon 3 Targaryen....
and Black amethysts from Asshai. The rarest kind, a deep true purple by daylight."
Now think about those three kings, and how they hid their eye color.... clothes, and amounts of light. Aegon 3- dressed all in black. Aegon 5- His deep purple eyes could not be disguised, though in dim light they looked black. Daemon 2- Daemon II Blackfyre, incognito as the hedge knight "John the Fiddler", wore blue clothing to help make his purple eyes look blue.[3]
Now look at Jon. He is there in the second row. Standing beside a hostage, and a maester. He is almost invisible..... and what happens during the three main events?
Jon is not allowed in the training yards... why? Because as a bastard he can’t fight the prince.... apart from being a lie, who says he can only be there if he fights the prince? Theon is there, Robb is there.
And then we have the hunt. Once again, Theon the hostage goes, Benjen goes, hell even Tyrion goes. But once again Jon is not allowed to go. But this is during the day once again.
Now look at the feast, Jon is sitting at the lower table, in the less important side of the hall, but so close to the procession that they pass within a foot of him. Now if you are hiding Jon as we see Ned did.... why in the hell would you have him sitting right beside where they walk in? In perfect view?
He settled back in his place on the bench among the younger squires and drank. The sweet, fruity taste of summerwine filled his mouth and brought a smile to his lips. The Great Hall of Winterfell was hazy with smoke and heavy with the smell of roasted meat and fresh-baked bread....
Jon 1 AGOT
He had sated his curiosity about the visitors when they made their entrance. The procession had passed not a foot from the place he had been given on the bench, and Jon had gotten a good long look at them all.”
Jon 1 AGOT
Think about that for a second, the kid your secretly hiding from the king, from the queen, you do not allow to be seen around the visitors during their stay, you let sit not a foot from the procession.....
You can because it is night time. It’s dark outside, it’s dim inside with just torches and fires to brighten the feast hall. And full of smoke... And once again, we are brought back to Aegon 5 eyes. His deep purple eyes could not be disguised, though in dim light they looked black.[2] Jon is not in danger of being recognized. His eyes look black.... so he is allowed to join. At night.
Now at the feast we are given a final clue that Jon’s grey eyes are not truly Stark eyes. At the feast we are given our first introduction to Benjen Stark. Remember Benjen has BLUE-GREY EYES.
Now remember Jon’s eyes, a grey so dark that they seemed black. Benjen who is dressed all in black as befitted a man of the Nights Watch, still has eyes that still look blue-grey.
His stark eyes are not darkening or lightening based on his clothes. His eyes are still blue-grey. They are nothing like Jon’s.
But what do we see with one bloodline?
Dany-
Dany touched it. The cloth was so smooth that it seemed to run through her fingers like water. She could not remember ever wearing anything so soft. It frightened her. She pulled her hand away. "Is it really mine?"
"A gift from the Magister Illyrio," Viserys said, smiling. Her brother was in a high mood tonight. "The color will bring out the violet in your eyes. And you shall have gold as well, and jewels of all sorts. Illyrio has promised. Tonight you must look like a princess."
AGOT Dany 1
They dressed her in the wisps that Magister Illyrio had sent up, and then the gown, a deep plum silk to bring out the violet in her eyes.
AGOT Dany 1
She had chosen a Qartheen gown today. The deep violet silk brought out the purple of her eyes.
ASOS Dany 3
And historical ones, Aegon 3, Aegon 5, Daemon 2.....
Aegon was a handsome boy[12] with dark purple eyes which looked almost black
His deep purple eyes could not be disguised, though in dim light they looked black. Daemon 2- Daemon II Blackfyre, incognito as the hedge knight "John the Fiddler", wore blue clothing to help make his purple eyes look blue.[3]
But doesn’t Jon look just like Arya? Like Ned? So why would he be hidden away ONLY during the day??????
The famed Targaryen eye color can be revealing when a member of the family is trying to be incognito......
Because he does not truly look like a Stark. Unless you compare him to his brothers. Which we will discuss in the next part.
