Following reports that filming of the Game of Thrones prequel series House of the Dragon had begun in Cornwall, England, fans have spotted an emblem that may point to a noble house making its debut in the show.
Locals had seen and photographed signs of Warner Bros. building a set that evoked the fantasy world of Westeros earlier this week, according to MetroUK. This aligns with the shooting schedule for House of the Dragon, and one particular element from the photos provides a strong link to the production: a sigil that matches that of House Velaryon.
The clearest image of the set, in the seaside county of Cornwall at the southernmost point of England, shows a stone arch with a heraldic crest engraved at its top. The animal in the carving appears to be a hippocampus -- a mythical creature with the head and forelegs of a horse and the tail of a fish, also called a seahorse.
Readers of George R.R. Martin's Fire & Blood, a compilation of Westeros history that serves as the basis for the series, identified the seahorse as the sigil for House Velaryon. Although Velaryon's sigil is generally depicted as a seahorse from the real world, the modification into a mythical equine sea creature is one that could be reasonably expected from a TV adaptation of the books' canon.
If the photo does indicate House Velaryon, the set with the archway may be the island of Driftmark, home to Lord Corlys Velaryon. The lord is said to be played by Prince of Persia's Steve Toussaint. Although high ranked among the noble families of the era, the Velaryons were eventually eradicated, and had no mention in Game of Thrones.
House of the Dragon will highlight the early days of House Targaryen, involving some of the ancestors of Daenerys Stormborn of Game of Thrones, as it takes place hundreds of years before the original series. Its plot is based on Fire & Blood, Martin's collection of stories and historical records related to House Targaryen.
Created by George R.R. Martin, Miguel Sapochnik and Ryan Condal, House of the Dragon stars Paddy Considine, Matt Smith, Olivia Cooke, Emma D'Arcy and Fabien Frankel. The series is expected to premiere on HBO and HBO Max in 2022.
Source: MetroUK