A giant in Mance Rayder's camp
Giants are a non-human race considered to be legendary by the inhabitants of the Seven Kingdoms south of the Wall. However, giants do actually exist in the furthest north Beyond the Wall. This is in contrast with both the Children of the Forest and the White Walkers, which even the wildlings claim to have not seen in thousands of years.
History
According to legend, Bran the Builder enlisted the aid of giants to raise the Wall.[1] The Free Folk believe he used magic to enslave them.[2]
Season 1
While at Castle Black, Tyrion Lannister tells Benjen Stark that he doesn't believe that "giants, and ghouls, and White Walkers" are lurking beyond the Wall.[3]
Osha asks Bran Stark if the unusually tall Hodor has some giant's blood in him after seeing him naked. Osha insists that Giants actually do exist north of the Wall.[4]
Season 2
Maester Luwin tells Bran Stark that many people think that magical creatures like the Giants never existed at all. Luwin tells Bran that he thinks they may have once existed in ancient times, but that they have long since gone extinct: "the dragons are gone, the Giants are dead, and the Children of the Forest forgotten".[5]
Season 3
A giant in the Free Folk camp in Skirling Pass
While approaching the camp of the Free Folk with Ygritte, Jon Snow sees a giant working. Ygritte tells Jon not to stare, as giants are very shy, but that there shyness can quickly turn into rage. She tells him how a giant once smashed a man into the ground like a hammer to a nail.[6]
Behind the scenes
Costume Designer Michele Clapton explained her approach to creating the clothing of the Giants:
- "I always think giants in costume look really corny. I wanted their upbringing to be different, as if as children, they were swaddled and wrapped in anything. And so on when they get bigger, they just keep wrapping and wrapping and wrapping. By the time they get to this age, they're just massively wrapped in fabrics and antlers and bones and grass. So the wrapping isn't clothes as we know them, it's protection. For me, that's what differentiates themm from the wildling humans."[7]
In the books
In the A Song of Ice and Fire novels, giants have a more ape-like appearance. They wear no clothing, instead they are covered in shaggy fur pelts like mammoths. The fur of older giants becomes grey and streaked with white. Their heads are thrust forward from their shoulder blades. The have squashed-in faces with square teeth and tiny eyes amidst folds of flesh. Their eyesight is poor and they snuffle constantly, smelling as much as they see.
They have sloped chests, and their lower torsos are about half again as wide as their upper torsos. Their arms hang lower than a man's, while their legs are shorter than their arms, ending in splayed feet that need no shoes even in the coldest weather. The female giants look similar to the men.
They also speak the Old Tongue of the First Men and ride into battle on the back of mammoths.
Gallery
See also
- Giants at A Wiki of Ice and Fire (spoilers from the books)
References
- ↑ House Stark (Complete Guide to Westeros)
- ↑ The Free Folk (Histories & Lore)
- ↑ "Lord Snow"
- ↑ "The Pointy End"
- ↑ "What is Dead May Never Die"
- ↑ "Valar Dohaeris"
- ↑ HBO Go Interactive Featurse: "Valar Dohaeris"
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