Summary

• Melisandre's necklace served as a source of power, transforming her appearance to conceal her true age and frailty.
• Some viewers contend that the necklace's power may only work on true believers like Selyse Baratheon, explaining previous scenes without it.
• Speculation arises on a potential crossover to the prequel, House of the Dragon, as Melisandre's magical necklace could make her a key character.

accuracy of Melisandre's prophecies is questionable throughout the series, she is shown to have magical abilities such as creating a shadow monster and resurrecting Jon Snow following his assassination. However, perhaps her most shocking display of power comes from Melisandre's necklace.

Following the death of Stannis and her failure to achieve the prophecy of "The Prince Who Was Promised," Melisanda returns to Castle Black. In the season 6 episode "Home", a defeated Melisandre is shown taking off her necklace which is revealed to be magic. It transforms her into the beautiful woman the audience knows her as, hiding the truth that Melisandre is a much older and frail woman. While it is a memorable reveal, viewers were quick to point out a plot hole with Melisandre's necklace.

Melisandre Removed Her Necklace In A Prior Scene

The Series Seemed To Forget The Source Of Melisandre's Power

Melisandre is typically seen throughout the series wearing that distinct necklace. During the scene in "Home" in which her true self is revealed, it is heavily implied that the necklace provides that power as she becomes an old woman as soon as she takes it off. However, it was pointed out that this was not the first time she did this as Melisandre took a bath in the episode titled "Mockingbird."

In Dragonstone, the Red Woman was shown without her necklace, yet still in her young form. Apart from raising questions about how old Melisandre was in Game of Thrones, this showed a moment where she didn't need the necklace to maintain appearances. The questionable moment has since been explained by the actress, but viewers had a better explanation for the scene. Here's the controversy, confusion, and possible meaning behind Melisandre's necklace explained.

Not Everyone Agreed That The Necklace Moment Was A Plot Hole

Some Have Suggested Melisandre's Disguise Works On True Believers Without The Necklace

While the previous scene of Melisandre without her necklace seems like a blunder on the part of the show, there have been some explanations offered. Melisandre clearly had magical powers, and some viewers thought that Melisandre's necklace only worked on certain people. Selyse Baratheon was one of Melisandre's most devoted followers, and the theory suggested that she always saw the Red Woman's true form, even when she wore the necklace.

Faith could have been a factor, and since Selyse was a believer in Melisandre and her religion, the Red Priestess wouldn't have needed to wear the necklace in the season 4 scene. This would have explained why Selyse asked Melisandre if she needed potions to convince Stannis to sleep with her, as if her appearance was a factor.

Worship of the Lord of Light was uncommon throughout Westeros, which was why it was necessary to wear the necklace and conceal her real identity.

Aside from Game of Thrones season 4, Melisandre continued wearing the necklace for the duration of the series. Worship of the Lord of Light was uncommon throughout Westeros, which was why it was necessary to wear the necklace and conceal her real identity. After encouraging Arya to target the Night King during the Battle of Winterfell, Melisandre fulfilled her purpose and embraced death. Melisandre's necklace was no longer necessary, so she took it off, leaving behind the Lord of Light's power in retaining her youth, and turned into dust.

Melisandre's Necklace Could Make Her the Only Prequel Crossover Character

Will Melisandre Appear In House Of The Dragon?

With House of the Dragon season 2 on the horizon, there's rightly been discussion about which Game of Thrones characters could make an appearance, and the powers bestowed by Melisandre's necklace mean that she could the prequel cast soon. Indeed, the Red Woman's Game of Thrones age is estimated at hundreds of years old, which could explain why Melisandre and Aegon the Conqueror's prophecies are highly similar.

In fact, the Prince Who Was Promised prophecy is starting to bear some importance in House of the Dragon, with Aegon's dream being ed down from Viserys to Rhaenyra. While the Prince Who Was Promised prophecy comes from unknown sources, it's likely that House of the Dragon connects to Game of Thrones through Aegon's dream, and Melisandre's presence could serve as another connection that isn't out of place for either show.

However, House of the Dragon is a series that is based on George R.R. Martin's Fire & Blood, a historical telling of the so-called Dance of Dragons which put House Targaryen against itself. While the show has already introduced a few surprises, bringing Melisandre into the story despite not previously being linked to it seems like a step too far. When introduced in Game of Thrones season 2, she is not a well-known figure which she would have been is she was already involved in the Dance of Dragons.

Melisandre Remains The Most Mysterious Game Of Thrones Character

Some Of Melisandre's Storylines Didn't Seem Fulfilled

Even without Melisandre's necklace, she is easily the most mysterious character in all of Westeros. Years after Game of Thrones ended, it's still unclear to many what Melisandre was really all about, even though she was the central focus of many iconic moments from the show. Like Aegon's dream and House Targaryen's heirloom dagger of prophecy, the Red Witch of Game of Thrones is a huge part of a puzzle that the Thrones universe has yet to solve for viewers.

She introduced so many interesting elements into the show, but many of them ended up going nowhere. She was convinced that it was Stannis Baratheon who was the Prince Who Was Promised, managing to convince him as well, only for him to suffer an unceremonious defeat. She regained some of her importance by resurrecting Jon Snow, seeing him as the Prince Who Was Promised. However, nothing really became of Jon's storyline after that.

Much like with Melisandre's necklace, she was a character who was interesting in concept but didn't make a lot of sense on Game of Thrones when examining her a little closer.

In the end, it seems like her main purpose in the show was to tell Arya Stark that she was the one who was meant to kill the Night King. While she was right about that, it seems like a lackluster final reveal to a character who seemed to have so much potential. Much like with Melisandre's necklace, she was a character who was interesting in concept but didn't make a lot of sense on Game of Thrones when examining her a little closer.