Kashyyyk clarion

"The Kashyyyk clarion horn is a musical instrument used in Wookiee gatherings."

―An entry in an artist's journal restored and expanded at the Graf Archive^[2]

The Kashyyykk clarion, or Wookiee Clarion, was a type of musical horn created by the Wookiee species of the planet Kashyyyk from the horn of a bantha, bronzium, wroshyr wood, and cerulean gemstones. The clarions were used to summon Wookiees to gatherings in times of peace and acted as an alarm in times of war, and they were also considered a piece of cultural art. By 232 BBY, the pirate Blackbolt had stolen a Kashyyyk clarion from the planet Tenoo and stored it in his treasure hoard on the cruiser Terror of Tenoo. A clarion was also part of the treasure stored in Tanglevine Base on Tenoo and the hoard of the pirates known as the Ganguls in Yarrum Tower on the planet Yarrum.

During the Clone Wars in 19 BBY, a clarion was sounded to summon Wookiees to defend the city Kachirho against the droid armies of the Confederacy of Independent Systems. In 5 BBY, a Kashyyyk clarion thought to have been made by the Porr'trrr tribe was displayed in the human antique dealer Luthen Rael's gallery on the planet Coruscant.

Description

"Crafted from the horn of a bantha, this musical instrument is most commonly sounded to summon Wookiees to war or other important gatherings."

―C-3PO, The Secrets of the Wookiees^[8]

Kashyyyk clarions were designed for Wookiees.

The Kashyyyk clarion,^[6] also known as the Wookiee Clarion,^[7] was a type of horn^[2] used as a musical instrument and created from a bantha horn with an orange lacquer finish. It was jacketed^[6] with patterns of hand-hammered bronzium plating^[1] that was merged with natural wroshyr wood and natural cerulean gemstones,^[7] the latter of which were set into the body.^[1]

Immense lung capacity was required to sound a call from the clarion,^[6] but with the lung strength^[7] of an adult Wookiee,^[8] they could then be heard as far as twenty kilometers (twelve miles) away. The sound's pitch could be changed using a series of at least four raised keys on the instrument's body.^[7] The clarions ranged in size from small^[3] to large enough^[8] that they were crafted to wrap around a Wookiee player and were comfortable to wear on the move due to how they cradled the wearer's torso.^[7]

History

Treasured instrument of the Wookiees

Blackbolt: "I knew it! You stowaways wanted me treasure."

Nubs: [Cries out in fear]

Durango: "It's not yours. This belonged to the people of Tenoo before it was stolen by—"

Blackbolt: "Me! Captain Blackbolt."

―Blackbolt and Nash Durango discuss the clarion and other treasures — 20?cb=20250116042720

▶️ (file info)^[4]

A Kashyyyk clarion was part of the treasure horde that Captain Blackbolt stole from Tenoo.

Kashyyyk clarions were handmade in a laborious process by the Wookiee species^[7] of the planet Kashyyyk. The instrument was considered a piece of cultural art but also had an important function, as its bellow^[1] was most commonly used to summon Wookiees to war or other important meetings.^[8] This wartime role was vital, as the clarion acted as an alarm that united scattered Wookiee tribes against a common foe. The clarion was also used to summon Wookiee clans together for friendly gatherings or festivities such as Life Day in times of prosperity and peace.^[7] However, their cacophonous cry was not ideally suited to making any sort of enjoyable music.^[8]

A small Kashyyyk clarion was part of a hoard of treasure that the pirate droid Captain Blackbolt stole from the planet Tenoo and was on board his cruiser, the Terror of Tenoo, when it powered down along with the pirate on an asteroid. A long time later,^[4] in 232 BBY,^[9] the ship was discovered by the crew of the pilot Nash Durango's shuttle, the Crimson Firehawk, who powered it back up and accidentally reactivated Blackbolt in the process. While trying to escape from him, they discovered the clarion and other treasures, but ultimately left them all on board the Terror of Tenoo when they sent it far away through hyperspace with Blackbolt still on board.^[4]

Must-have hoard feature

"That's it? That's all the treasure you could steal? Ugh, put it over there with the rest."

―Sellaccc Orryak orders pirates to add treasure to the hoard including the clarions^[5]

The treasure of Tanglevine Base included a Kashyyyk clarion (left).

A larger Kashyyyk clarion was part of another treasure hoard kept in Tanglevine Base, a secret hideout on Tenoo used by the adventurer Kaliah Kublop and Jedi Master Staas Ragnabi. Long after the pair's lifetimes, the base's location had been lost, but it was re-discovered by the Jedi Kai Brightstar and Djovi Resmia^[10] in 232 BBY,^[9] with the clarion leaned against one of the base's beds when they entered. However, the Jedi had been followed by Blackbolt and his crew, who intended to steal the treasure and so attacked the Jedi. Brightstar and Resmia defeated the pirates and prevented them from stealing the treasures.^[10]

Later that year,^[11] two large Kashyyyk clarions were part of the treasure hoard of the criminal Ganguls gang, led by the Trandoshan Sellaccc Orryak, in their headquarters in^[5] Yarrum Tower on the Outer Rim planet Yarrum.^[12] The hoard included treasure brought to the gang as tribute by various pirates in the tower. When Brightstar and fellow Jedi Nubs and Lys Solay and their ally Cyrus Vuundir fought against the Ganguls and other pirates in the tower, the Jedi used the Force to push the trio of pirates known as the Comet Runners back into the treasure hoard, causing the Nosaurian Slegg and the Theelin Gossi to knock into one of the clarions and topple it. The Jedi and Vuundir then fled.^[5]

Gallery curio

"Decorated with cerulean gems and bronzium plating, the clarion is clearly an item of great cultural significance (and has been known to fetch quite a price from high-end art collectors who wish to display them in their galleries)."

―C-3PO, The Secrets of the Wookiees^[8]

In 19 BBY,^[13] a clarion was sounded to summon Wookiees to defend the city Kachirho on Kashyyyk from the Separatist Droid Army as part of the Clone Wars between the Galactic Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems. Wookiees young and old from all areas of the planet answered the call.^[6]

A Kashyyyk clarion was displayed on Coruscant.

As items of great cultural significance, Kashyyyk clarions were known to fetch quite high prices from high-end art collectors wishing to display them in galleries,^[8] and in 5 BBY,^[14] a Kashyyyk clarion of unknown origin^[7] was displayed^[3] alongside other Wookiee objects^[15] in Galactic Antiquities and Objects of Interest,^[16] a gallery run by the human antique dealer Luthen Rael on^[3] the planet^[1] Coruscant.^[3]

The various swirling decorations on the clarion that Rael displayed were believed to be the insignia of the Porr'trrr tribe, with the artisan who handcrafted the clarion having taken great pains to adorn it with hammered decorations that acted as a clear indicator that the heirloom celebrating the tribe's identity had been used in sacred rituals over many years. A brass plate among the clarion's keys depicted a noble Wookiee looking in the direction of the player, with possible identities for the individual depicted including the instrument's owner and player or someone important to them, a tribal elder, or the clarion maker's own self-portrait used to mark their work.^[7] The clarion was still on display in the gallery^[17] in 4 BBY^[18] when Rael's assistant Kleya Marki returned to the shop from^[17] the planet^[12] Chandrila.^[17]

Writings on the clarion

"When blown by an adult Wookiee, it is said that the clarion can be heard from twenty kilometers away. To this day, Chewbacca distinctly remembers the blare of this horn across Kachirho, rallying his kin against the approaching Separatist battle droids."

―C-3PO, The Secrets of the Wookiees^[8]

Chewbacca (center) still remembered hearing the Kashyyyk clarion call at Kachirho during the Battle of Kashyyyk over fifty-four years later.

At some point, an artist who was compiling a journal of sketches and stories drew a sketch of a Kashyyyk clarion. The sketch and a caption were included when the journal was restored, expanded, and displayed by the Graf Archive^[2] at some point no earlier than 34 ABY.^[19] No earlier than 35 ABY,^[20] the Wookiee Chewbacca still remembered hearing the Kashyyyk clarion that sounded at Kachirho during the Clone Wars, information that the protocol droid C-3PO included in an entry on the clarions in his book The Secrets of the Wookiees.^[8] At some point after 35 ABY, an entry on the Kashyyyk clarion of unknown origin was included as one of a hundred in a book detailing objects from throughout galactic history.^[7]

Behind the scenes

The Kashyyyk clarion was first shown in the Legends book Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith: The Visual Dictionary. — The Kashyyyk clarion was first shown in the Legends book *Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith: The Visual Dictionary*.

The Kashyyyk clarion was created as a prop for the prequel trilogy film Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith,^[21] which was released on May 19, 2005,^[22] but is not visible in the film's final cut.^[23] The instrument was first shown in the current Star Wars canon in the 2016 reference book Star Wars: The Visual Encyclopedia.^[1] It then made its first appearance in "Aldhani," the fourth episode of the Disney+ live-action television series Star Wars: Andor's first season,^[3] which aired on September 28, 2022.^[24]

During production of the episode, the props team was asked for suggestions on what items might be displayed in the gallery, with prop makers like Nick Tyrrell suggesting various objects that had appeared in previous Star Wars media as inspiration.^[25] Star Wars 100 Objects, Kristin Baver's 2023 reference book, provided the alternate name of Wookiee Clarion.^[7] A Kashyyyk clarion later appeared in the Disney+ animated series Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures.^[4] Artist Virgile Fondanaiche did modeling work of the instrument using the software Autodesk Maya for its depiction in^[26] the episode "The Terror of Tenoo," the first part of the fifth episode of the series' second season,^[4] which was released on August 14, 2024.^[27] In the Star Wars Legends continuity, the instrument was first mentioned in the reference book Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith: The Visual Dictionary, which was written by James Luceno^[21] and released prior to Revenge of the Sith on April 2, 2005.^[28]