The dagger in the cat’s paw of Aegon the Conqueror in House of the Dragon
Episode 4 of House of the Dragon shows Aegon the Conqueror’s dagger and the words carved into it. The dagger is made of Valyrian steel and has a dragon bone hilt. King Viserys shares the dagger and its prophecy with his daughter Princess Rhaenyra. Rhaenyra finds the blade cooking in a pot of fire when she arrives. He does this to make her aware of the duties and responsibilities that come with being the heir to the Iron Throne. King Viserys now carries this information and says he tells Rhaenyra the following.
“The responsibility I have given you, the burden of this knowledge, is greater than the throne, the king, is greater than you and your desires.”
It was because of the rumor about Rhaenyra and Daemon coupling in Silk Street late at night. So let’s look at the history of this dagger and understand the prophecy.
Dagger Catspaw in Game of Thrones
Game of Thrones has many instances where we see the cat’s paw dagger. The most notable example was in Season 1. The dagger was used by a hired killer when he attempted to murder a comatose Bran Stark. This would eventually cause the War of the Five Kings. The dagger apparently once belonged to Petyr Baelish. That was until he lost it to Tyrion Lannister in a bet. However, that turned out to be a lie. The dagger returned once again during Game of Thrones Season 7. That’s when Littlefinger gave it to Bran. In fact, in the final season, it was used by Arya Stark to end the Great War against the White Walkers. She used this same dagger during the Battle of Winterfell to kill the Night King.
The dagger of Aegon the Conqueror of the House of the Dragon
The Cat’s Paw Dagger or Conqueror’s Dagger of Aegon is an extremely important relic. Moreover, his prophecy will play an important role in the future. The dagger also belonged to Aenar Targaryen before Aegon. It turns out that Aenar was a dragon lord from ancient Valyria. Aenar’s daughter, Daenys “the Dreamer”, once had a vision concerning the Fate of Valyria. It was an event that fragmented the land and destroyed the city. Twelve years later, his vision has come true. The volcanoes known as Fourteen Flames erupted and forced everyone to flee. Luckily Daenys was able to convince Aenar Targaryen to leave Valyria and move to Dragonstone. The history and ownership of the dagger before Aenar, however, is unknown even to King Viserys.
The Song of Ice and Fire Prophecy
The words engraved on the dagger are also integral to the storyline, especially about Aegon the Conqueror’s dream Song of Ice and Fire. During Episode 4 of House of the Dragon, Princess Rhaenyra reads those same lines that were written in High Valyrian. “Out of my blood came the promised prince, and his will shall be the song of ice and fire.”
King Viserys explained to Rhaenyra that the blade was the result of Aegon’s vision or rather his dream. “Before Aegon died, the last of the Valyrian Pyromancers hid his song in steel.” Apparently, the engraved words can only be seen once the dagger is heated in the fire. This dream was once revealed in House of the Dragon episode 1. After Viserys announced Princess Rhaenyra as his heir, he shared with her Aegon’s prophecy which had been passed down through generations of Targaryens as they were preparing to sit on the iron throne. Aegon the Conqueror had dreamed of the destruction of humanity and the kingdom due to a “terrible winter, blowing from the far north”.
This very dream led Aegon to conquer Westeros. He did this in hopes that a Targaryen on the throne could prevent such a horrific future by uniting the Seven Kingdoms against the common threat. This also ties into the prophecy of the promised prince, who is destined to save the world from darkness. In one of the House of the Dragon trailers, the catspaw dagger makes an appearance. In the trailer, Alicent Hightower grabs the gun from Viserys’ pocket and charges towards Rhaenyra.
