Fastitocalon

"Fastitocalon" is a poem by J.R.R. Tolkien about a beast of the same name. The setting is Middle-earth.

Fastitocalon is the last of the mighty turtle-fish who is the central character in this poem of the same name. This poem is well-known to the Hobbits and tells of how because of his huge size, sailors landed on his back only to drown when he dove underwater in response to their lighting a fire upon him.

The Fastitocalon was the size of a small island and vegetation would often grow on his back when not submerged adding to his deceitful appearance as an actual island.

It is never explained whether the turtle-fish were an actual race or fictional characters for the poem. It is distinctly possible that the story is in fact an allegory of the fall of Númenor. Like the Fastitocalon, Númenor too sank below the waves, and drowned most of its inhabitants.

The term Fastitocalon is first found in the Old English Poem, "The Whale", taken from the Exeter Book at folios 96 verso to 97 verso. In this, the name is apparently a variant of Aspidochelone, the name of a fabled sea creature. The poem has no known author, and is one of three poems in the manuscript that are allegorical in nature, the other two being "The Phoenix" and "The Panther". "Fastitocalon" is the name given to the devil in "The Whale".