> >Peter notes that the Orb is the source of Authority. As such, it is an
> >imperial relic, a symbol of the ultimate authority of the Emperor.
>
> Careful. It was seen as the Symbol of Authority for the Khordavu
> Dynasty and not necessarily for _all_ dynasties. In particular, the
> Jenarong Dynasty, which was thoroughly legitimate, did _not_ need the
> orb to rule. Likewise I must voice my suspicion that the tale of
> How Antirius lost the Orb is a spurious justification for depriving
> the Vanchites of their ancient relic (ie the Orb was never Dara Happan
> to begin with).
Well, IMHO there are/were several Orbs, anyway, which takes some juice out of these particular nits.
It seems to me that arguments pro et contra whichever position would depend on a reliable dating of the Gods' Wall. When was it made/created ? Plentonius appears to have believed the Wall ancient, at the time of Khordavu's reign, which suggests that the Orbs Ezelveztay/Orb of Authority/Orb of the Eye/Orb of X and an Orb-like thing represented by the Light Rune in Yelm's left hand were ancient relics from the"start of the world" (GRoY p. 62). This would support Harald's position, but iconography can be easily tampered with ... and conspiracy theory is fun, too (all those cover-ups) ...
Fundamentally, this is a question concerning veracity and/or fallacy of the mythology surrounding the Gods' Wall. But we know that the names and the gods associated with figures on the wall are subject to fashion ... Looks like an excellent place for GM fiat, to my mind.
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