The INSIDER Summary:
- Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish is the kind of villain everyone loves to hate.
- This devious character has many secrets of his own.
- Many events from his past, like his heritage and relationships with other characters, are probably a surprise to casual viewers.
He’s the kind of delicious villain you love to hate. Or… maybe you just hate him. Either way, there’s no denying the major influence Petyr “Littlefinger” Baelish has had on the other characters from Game of Thrones— and mostly for their detriment.
Whether he was betraying Ned Stark, scheming to murder a monarch, killing someone who passionately loves him, or making creepy moves on a girl way too young for him, he always seemed to have a plan. His way of playing the game of thrones was to try and plan for every possibility dozens of moves ahead of everyone else, keep his enemies guessing, and always seeming to hold the upper hand.
Naturally, a man who plays his cards so close to the vest has many hidden secrets of his own. There are plenty of things about him that casual viewers (and/or readers) might never know. His past — including events from his childhood up to where we find him when Game of Thrones and the novels begin — is full of surprises. Here’s a deep dive into fifteen commonly unknown things about Littlefinger that many fans are unaware of.
Needless to say, there are spoilers ahead if you’re not caught up on the show or the novels.
15. House Baelish barely exists
Petyr Baelish is the latest in the very short history of his house. House Baelish has no huge castle or grand swath of land to call home. Its seat of power is a minuscule tower which Petyr himself dubbed the “Drearfort,” because he despises its insignificance. (Not to be confused with the Dreadfort, the ancestral home of the treacherous — and now dead — House Bolton.)
On the eastern shore of Westeros just above the Vale of Arryn is a collection of four narrow, extended peninsulas called the Fingers. The Drearfort is located on the very smallest of the Fingers, on a tiny piece of land. This is, incidentally, how Petyr acquired the nickname “Littlefinger.” (More on that later.)
House Baelish’s holdings were meager before Petyr came along and displayed a talent for finances. He is the only remaining member of House Baelish, with no siblings or other family to speak of.
14. He picked his own sigil
The Free City of Braavos is home to the Iron Bank, as well as the House of Black and White, where Arya Stark trained with Jaqen H’ghar and the Faceless Men, learning fighting skills with that horrible Waif girl and learning to wear other people’s faces. Towering high over this city is the Titan of Braavos, a gargantuan statue that serves as a guardian of its namesake city.
The traditional sigil of House Baelish is the head of the Titan of Braavos (for good reason — see #11). The head on the sigil is stone and gray with a Trojan-style helmet and eyes aflame, just like the real Titan. The head is typically displayed atop a green background.
In keeping with his disdain for everything related to his heritage, Petyr Baelish opted to discard the Titan sigil when he came of age. He instead created a new crest that he seems to prefer and brandishes proudly — a mockingbird. This symbol is usually seen over a green background as well, but not always. Why did he choose a mockingbird? It’s never been fully explained.
13. Where's the beard?
In George R.R. Martin’s "A Song of Ice and Fire" novels, Petyr Baelish is described as slender and short, with sharp facial bone structure and a chin beard that ends in a point. Obviously, the pointed beard is there because it makes him appear more eeeeeevil. Think about it: it’s pretty much an upside down pitchfork with a single prong. And everybody knows whose signature accessory is a pitchfork.
On "Game of Thrones," Baelish is played by actor Aidan Gillen, who fits the above description pretty well. He’s slender, and has close-cropped, graying hair. But he’s not short, and he’s never sported the character’s signature pointy beard, opting for a stubbly goatee instead.
You have to wonder if, when the show was in pre-production, the producers and Gillen tried out a look closer to how he’s described in the book, but maybe the style just didn’t look right on the actor?
See the rest of the story at Business Insider