'House of the Dragon': Unveiling the Mystery Behind the Small Council's Stone Balls

Wow, the Game of Thrones prequel spinoff series House of the Dragon sure has some balls, hasn't it? We are, of course, referring to the stone balls on the table in the Emmy-nominated show's Small Council scenes.

Now, you may have spotted these props in the HBO show, particularly when King Viserys (Paddy Considine) gathers his Small Council in the Red Keep. Viserys and his advisers each have a color-coded stone before them on a marble dish. In the middle of the table, there's a large dish that holds the stones of the absent council members.

In late August 2022, WinterIsComing.net reported that these stone balls aren't mentioned in author George R. R. Martin's books — so, what do they mean?

The idea for the stones came from House of the Dragon set decorator Claire Nie Richards and production designer Jim Clay, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

"It represented the council coming in and being part of the meeting," Claire told the outlet.

Ryan Condal, House of the Dragon's showrunner, approved of that bit of set decor.

"Everybody shows up for work and they 'punch in,'" he explained. "I thought it was really cool. It's a way of visualizing the set formality of the Small Council chamber. It’s enjoyable; we should have things that we like in this world."

Back in August 2022, former CNET editor Jennifer Bisset observed that the stone balls at the Small Council meetings show council members' loyalty — or disloyalty.

"Whenever Prince Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith) is absent from meetings, his dark ball stands out in the center of the table, alone in the larger dish," she wrote. "After that first episode, it symbolizes Daemon, the black sheep, being cast out from the council as well as the race for becoming Viserys' heir."

Plus, /Film writer Mike Shutt said the stone balls are a major symbol of a Seven Kingdoms tradition that will soon be broken: "They add to the decorum of the proceedings, a symbol that shows a functioning government," he said.

"Only seven people at maximum sit around this table. You can clearly see who is and isn't there," he added. "This is the process. This is tradition … and that practice was abandoned at some point. The process of governing changed, even if the change was slight, and perhaps that signals the kingdom to evolve in other ways."

As soon as House of the Dragon premiered on HBO, viewers took notice of those stone balls. On Aug. 21, 2022, during the series premiere, one wrote on X (formerly known as Twitter), "I really want someone to explain this ball-on-the-table thing they keep doing at every Small Council meeting."

"What are those little stone balls they put on the table for when they have their meetings?" another user questioned that same night. "Is that how they take attendance? They seem important but also irrelevant."

Season 2 of House of the Dragon premieres on Sunday, June 16 at 9 p.m. EST on HBO and Max. And if you need to catch up, the first season is now streaming on HBO Max.