The Riddle of the Black Cloaks?

[Flammifer]

The scouts from Rivendell found one black cloak on the rocks of the rapids. The Witch King also lost a black cloak on Weathertop.

Seven Black cloaks unaccounted for.

Either the scouts weren't very good, and missed finding the other cloaks, or the cloaks walked off on the backs of the Riders.

If the supposition is held that the flood totally uncorporealized the Riders, rendering them pure spirits - empty and shapeless, as Gandalf says, then the cloaks (and boots) would have dropped to the ground (or water), unsupported by bodies. But seven cloaks and eighteen boots, that should have been there in this case, were not found by the scouts.

Poor scouts? Or did the Ring-wraiths remain semi corporeal though invisible, and just walked back to Mordor?

 

[Rachel Port]

Or the seven cloaks etc. were washed away in the flood, a more likely explanation.

I've been thinking of the word "uncloaked," which we first hear from Gandalf when Bilbo accuses him of wanting the Ring for himself. He warns Bilbo that he might see Gandalf the Grey uncloaked. I think that means revealed in his true power. We do get to see Gandalf the Grey uncloaked on the Bridge of Khazad-dum, when he reveals his power to the Balrog and says "You cannot pass."

The idea of the Riders unhorsed and uncloaked seems to imply the opposite - that the Riders are made powerless by being uncloaked.

Perhaps the similarity is that cloaks hide what is underneath, whether it's Aragorn's sword or Gandalf's inner power or the Riders' nothingness. And if the Riders' cloaks hide nothingness by giving it form, being uncloaked leaves them unable to interact in the world.

I'm of the school that doesn't believe the Nazgul are embodied but invisible - I believe that they are spirits that waft or drift back home in their impotence.

 

[Flammifer]

The supposition that the Nazgul are rendered completely dis-embodied and uncorporeal by the flood is quite attractive, as it gives an explanation for Gandalf's comment that they, "have been obliged to return to their Master in Mordor, empty and shapeless".

The follow-on supposition, that the Witch King was temporarily rendered completely uncorporeal at Weathertop, is also attractive in that it offers a reason for his cloak to be found on the ground.

However, there are a number of problems with these suppositions:

1: What about the boots?

2. How do pure spirits travel? What is wafting? Do we get any evidence of wafting? When the Ring goes into Mt. Doom, "into the heart of the storm, with a cry that pierced all other sounds, tearing the clouds asunder, the Nasgul came, shooting like flaming bolts, as caught in the fiery ruin of hill and sky they crackled, withered and went out." No wafting in evidence there. "To the dismay of those that stood by, about the body of Saruman a grey mist gathered, and rising slowly to a great height like smoke from a fire, as a pale shrouded figure it loomed overcame a cold win the Hill. For a moment it wavered, looking to the West; but out of the West came a cold wind, and it bent away, and with a sigh dissolved into nothing." No wafting there. Also, no dissolution into pure uncorporeality. Grey mist is corporeal, even though tenuous. Tom Bombadil says of the Barrow-wights, "A shadow came out of dark places far away, and the bones were stirred in the mounds." Those wights 'came'. If their coming had been as unusual as 'wafting' perhaps Tom would have said? They also are 'shadow' which seems at least partially corporeal. When Tom banishes the Barrow-wight, "Then there was a long trailing shriek, fading away into an unguessable distance, and after that silence." Now, that trailing away into an unguessable distance, might be read as rapid 'wafting', but, I think, the wight is travelling not spatially through the physical world, but spiritually, towards "where gates stand forever shut, till the world is mended." Similarly, when Gandalf 'dies' upon Celbdil, "Then darkness took me, and I strayed out of thought and time, and I wandered far on roads that I will not tell. Naked I was sent back - for a brief time," I don't think he was 'wafting' around the physical world, but wandering spiritually.

3. Frodo sees the Black Riders as they are on 'The Other Side' twice. Just as he sees Glorfindel as, "a white figure that shone and did not grow dim like the others", so he sees the Riders, once on Weathertop while wearing the Ring, once at the Ford while not wearing the Ring, but partly 'in the wraith world' due to the Morgul- knife. The .first time he could see 'beneath their black wrappings'. "In their white faces burned keen and merciless eyes; under their mantles were long grey robes; upon their grey hairs were helms of silver; in their haggard hands were swords of steel." At the Ford, "He could see them clearly now; they appeared to have cast aside their hoods and black cloaks, and they were robed in white and grey. Swords were naked in their pale hands; helms were on their heads. Their cold eyes glittered and they called to him with fell voices." The Wraiths are visibly corporeal on 'The Other Side'. Now, true, that the supposition would claim that these observations were of the 'Sauron enhanced' version of the Riders, not the 'totally uncorporeal version'. But, do we really think there is yet another side to the Other Side?

4. If the Nazgul have the great weakness of the supposition: That they can be knocked into total dis-embodiment and uncorporality by the sudden shock of the name of Elbereth, or being whelmed in a flood, then why have the forces of good not taken more advantage of this weakness. Give the Witch King of Angmar a good blast of Elbereth prayer when he is conquering Arnor? Zap! He is out of the picture (and at that time has Sauron even re-gained enough power to re-boost him should he return to Sauron?). Gandalf, just call Elbereth on him as he rides through the great gate of Minas Tirith? Zap! He will disappear, and have to waft back to Barad-dur.

In short, I think the supposition raises more problems and questions than it solves or answers.

An other interpretation of 'empty and shapeless' would just be that the Nazgul are always 'empty'. Spiritually empty. In the same way as the Barrow-wights, "Out of the formless stream of sad but horrible sounds, strings of words would now and again shape themselves: grim, hard, cold words, heartless and miserable. The night was railing against the morning of which it was bereaved, and the cold was cursing the warmth for which it hungered." And, having lost their cloaks, and being invisible due to their Rings, the Nazgul are, of course, 'shapeless'. At least to those who can only see One World - the Seen World.







The trouble with this attractive supposition is that adopting it brings up more problems than are solved.





3.

3.

 

[Anthony Lawther]

Flammifer,

I think you have captured the situation quite well.

We see the effect of boots on the ground without actually seeing the boots.

The only things of the Nazgul that we see on 'this side' are the horses, the cloaks, and the morgul blade.
The morgul blade is only seen in the Witch-King's hand by Frodo while wearing the Ring, and then by all, but no longer held by the Witch-King.

Isildur, Gollum, Bilbo, Frodo, and Sam are all rendered invisible, along with all that they are carrying and wearing, when they put on the One.
Gandalf is not rendered invisible when he picks up the One to fling it into the fire in Bag End.

Gollum is not invisible when wrestling with Frodo who is invisible with the One on his finger.

This evidence suggests a number of premises:
An incarnate being wearing the One Ring is rendered invisible.
Inanimate objects carried or worn by an incarnate being wearing the One Ring are rendered invisible.
An incarnate being carrying the One Ring is visible.
Inanimate objects carried or worn by an incarnate being carrying the One Ring are visible.
An incarnate being in contact with another incarnate being wearing the One Ring is visible.

If these same premises apply to the Nine Rings, and these factors become permanent through long exposure that leaves two possibilities for the cloaks of the Nazgul:

1. The fact that the Nazgul no longer wear their Rings allows the cloaks to remain visible while their clothing and gear is invisible.
The clothing (robes of white and grey) that Frodo sees are then either really the memory of their clothes from ages past, regular clothing rendered invisible through contact with the invisible Nazgul, or long use of their Rings renders the clothing they were wearing for the long ages invisible with them (very hardwearing fabric if so).

2. The cloaks are specially treated to retain visibility while in contact with the invisible Nazgul, where regular items become invisible.

At Weathertop he could see 'beneath their black wrappings', while at the Ford of Bruinen 'He could see them clearly now; they appeared to have cast aside their hoods and black cloaks, and they were robed in white and grey. Swords were naked in their pale hands; helms were on their heads.'
So any supposition that the cloaks are 'holding them together' doesn't work, unless we lean heavily on the phrase 'appeared to'.
While folks are questioning the lack of boots being found, there has been no questioning to this point about the remainder of their gear (swords, helms, etc.)

I think this, combined with the very physical descriptions on the Pelennor suggest invisible corporeality is the default state for the Nazgul, and they would need to walk, not waft, back to Mordor. If the cloaks require special treatment to remain visible, that could explain why they simply couldn't raid clotheslines for new outerwear.

Both the 'wafting Nazgul' and 'walking Nazgul missing their specially treated cloaks' scenarios require a return to Mordor for re-cloaking, but one involves spiritual work, while the other requires special textile treatments. In either case, their travel is impeded by their poor vision.

The 'wafting' Nazgul should have left their boots, swords, and helms behind, and yet there is no evidence of this.

The 'walking' Nazgul can take them with them, albeit invisibly.

 

[Rachel Port]

This evidence suggests a number of premises:
An incarnate being wearing the One Ring is rendered invisible.
Inanimate objects carried or worn by an incarnate being wearing the One Ring are rendered invisible.
An incarnate being carrying the One Ring is visible.
Inanimate objects carried or worn by an incarnate being carrying the One Ring are visible.
An incarnate being in contact with another incarnate being wearing the One Ring is visible.

We know from The Hobbit that carrying the Ring doesn't make one invisible. And in LOTR we see that Bilbo pretty much carried it all the time, as Frodo did after him. We don't need to see that Gandalf doesn't become invisible when he takes the Ring to throw it in the fire.

Both the 'wafting Nazgul' and 'walking Nazgul missing their specially treated cloaks' scenarios require a return to Mordor for re-cloaking, but one involves spiritual work, while the other requires special textile treatments. In either case, their travel is impeded by their poor vision.

The 'wafting' Nazgul should have left their boots, swords, and helms behind, and yet there is no evidence of this.

That would be clear if we weren't talking about a raging flood that could have carried such things away as they obviously carried some of the horses, much heavier than boots, swords, etc.

I'm a believer in the wafting, and haven't found an argument to change my mind yet.

1. The fact that the Nazgul no longer wear their Rings allows the cloaks to remain visible while their clothing and gear is invisible.
The clothing (robes of white and grey) that Frodo sees are then either really the memory of their clothes from ages past, regular clothing rendered invisible through contact with the invisible Nazgul, or long use of their Rings renders the clothing they were wearing for the long ages invisible with them (very hardwearing fabric if so).

Frodo wearing the Ring sees the Nazgul as they are on the other side. I don't think we can assume that's how they would appear in this world if they could be seen. That's where they naturally exist. It's Frodo's ability to see the other side that stands out, as happens also with Glorfindel, who also looks different.

One thing I wonder about is what are the powers of the nine rings. These were kings and men or power - I assume their rings augmented their powers and perhaps gave them greater influence or wealth or whatever as well as immortality.. I also wonder how they used the rings - did they wear the rings constantly or only sometimes? How long did the wraithification take? And were all nine rings given at once, or over several generations? There is really very little we know about the nine.

 

[Flammifer]

Flammifer,



1. The fact that the Nazgul no longer wear their Rings allows the cloaks to remain visible while their clothing and gear is invisible.
The clothing (robes of white and grey) that Frodo sees are then either really the memory of their clothes from ages past, regular clothing rendered invisible through contact with the invisible Nazgul, or long use of their Rings renders the clothing they were wearing for the long ages invisible with them (very hardwearing fabric if so).

2. The cloaks are specially treated to retain visibility while in contact with the invisible Nazgul, where regular items become invisible.

At Weathertop he could see 'beneath their black wrappings', while at the Ford of Bruinen 'He could see them clearly now; they appeared to have cast aside their hoods and black cloaks, and they were robed in white and grey. Swords were naked in their pale hands; helms were on their heads.'
So any supposition that the cloaks are 'holding them together' doesn't work, unless we lean heavily on the phrase 'appeared to'.
While folks are questioning the lack of boots being found, there has been no questioning to this point about the remainder of their gear (swords, helms, etc.)

I think this, combined with the very physical descriptions on the Pelennor suggest invisible corporeality is the default state for the Nazgul, and they would need to walk, not waft, back to Mordor. If the cloaks require special treatment to remain visible, that could explain why they simply couldn't raid clotheslines for new outerwear.

Both the 'wafting Nazgul' and 'walking Nazgul missing their specially treated cloaks' scenarios require a return to Mordor for re-cloaking, but one involves spiritual work, while the other requires special textile treatments. In either case, their travel is impeded by their poor vision.

The 'wafting' Nazgul should have left their boots, swords, and helms behind, and yet there is no evidence of this.

The 'walking' Nazgul can take them with them, albeit invisibly.

I like your logic Anthony.

One question. Do we know that the Nine are no longer wearing their Rings? From my recollection, the evidence on this is ambiguous?

If they are wearing their Rings, then the cloaks must have special treatment to prevent them from being rendered invisible.

If they are not wearing their Rings, then it stands to reason that the helms, swords, grey and white gaments, pale faces and hands, are the normal aspect of the Wraiths on the 'Other Side'. In this case, the cloaks could be normal cloaks, as there are no Rings being worn to make them invisible?

Now, if the bodies, visible on the 'Other Side' are mere illusions, and the Wraiths are truly incorporeal, then they could not sit on horses nor wear cloaks, nor could the Witch King 'spring forward' to attack Frodo with the Morgul Knife. He would have had to 'waft' forward.

So, we have two possibilities:

One is the 'supposition' - that the corporeal elements of the Wraiths, which allow them to sit on horses, wear cloaks, spring forward, etc. are special effects conferred on otherwise totally incorporeal beings by Sauron. In which case, why such elaboration? Why give them helms? crowns? garments of grey and white? swords? If the 'supposition' considers that Sauron weakens himself by conferring corporality powers on the Nazgul, why elaborate that corporality beyond what is needed to sit on horses, wear cloaks and speak?

Also, there is a question of timing. The Nazgul re-appear in Third Age 1300. In 1975, when the Witch King is defeated in the North, he is described as "black robed and black masked upon a black horse" (Appendix A). So, Sauron must have 'boosted' the Nazgul previously. However, Sauron is not suspected to have re-appeared in Dol Guldur until 2060. Under the 'supposition' was Sauron recovered enough to boost the Nazgul by 1300 or before 1975? If he 'boosted' them back in the Second Age, would that 'boost' have lasted through his death, weakening, and recovery?

The second possibility is that the Nazgul are always at least semi corporeal. No need for a 'boost' from Sauron. No need to 'waft' back to Mordor. In this supposition they are 'obliged' tactically, rather than spiritually, to return to their Master in Mordor, because they have lost mobility, they have become invisible, they are scattered, they cannot see well, they are near to scary Elves like Glorfindel and the other exiles in Rivendell, who can see them, they need to report and re-group.

Now, back to the question of whether or not the Wraiths are wearing their Rings? As far as I remember, the main passage which suggests that they do not wear their Rings is Galadriel saying, "You saw the Eye of him that holds the Seven and the Nine", which people interpret as 'Sauron holds the Nine and the Ring-wraiths do not wear them'. But, Galadriel is clearly speaking metaphorically. We know that Sauron does not actually 'hold' the Seven. Gandalf already told us, "Seven the Dwarf-kings possessed, but three he has recovered, and the others the dragons have consumed". So, Sauron does not actually 'hold' all the Seven, and might well not physically 'hold' the Nine. (Any other evidence about whether the Nine are with Sauron or with the Wraiths?)

If the Nine are wearing their Rings, it would offer an explanation as to why a black cloak was found at Weathertop. Quite simple. The Witch King, having stabbed Frodo with the Morgul Knife, and been rattled by the name of Elbereth, wanted to disappear. Drop the visible cloak, and poof he becomes invisible and heads off to await Hobbit wraithification.

(Another puzzle: At the approach to the Ford, Nine Riders are seen. The passage is all told from the view point of Frodo, but, "to the dismay of Frodo and his friends out from the trees and rocks away on the left four other Riders came flying". If all Nine Riders were visible to Frodo's friends, how did the Witch King acquire another black cloak? Did he return to Weathertop, and retrieve the one that Aragorn found?

My speculation is that the Nine are wearing their Rings. That this renders them invisible. That the black cloaks are specially endowed so that they remain visible. That the Nine are only semi-wraithified, semi-corporeal. This seems to me a simpler explanation, with fewer knock-on problems, than the Sauron boost 'supposition'.

 

[No One in Particular]

Quoth Flammifer:

Now, back to the question of whether or not the Wraiths are wearing their Rings? As far as I remember, the main passage which suggests that they do not wear their Rings is Galadriel saying, "You saw the Eye of him that holds the Seven and the Nine", which people interpret as 'Sauron holds the Nine and the Ring-wraiths do not wear them'. But, Galadriel is clearly speaking metaphorically. We know that Sauron does not actually 'hold' the Seven. Gandalf already told us, "Seven the Dwarf-kings possessed, but three he has recovered, and the others the dragons have consumed". So, Sauron does not actually 'hold' all the Seven, and might well not physically 'hold' the Nine. (Any other evidence about whether the Nine are with Sauron or with the Wraiths?)



When I was younger and read the stories I did indeed interpret the story as the Nazgûl each wearing their individual ring, and Sauron "holding" them in the sense of ownership, not necessarily physical possession, i.e Sauron does not have all of the remaining Seven and the Nine on a ring tree in his armoire in the master bedroom in the Barad Dûr.

What changed my mind: after the fall of the Witch King, Gandalf did not make a beeline for the front gate to collect the fallen Ring before some poor soldier picked it up (bad) or Eómer or Imrahil found it (worse). If he thought that ring was on the ground, just waiting to be picked up and the whole cycle of wraithification to be restarted, he would have torn his toenails off getting down there to secure it.

Now possibly JRRT might have overlooked this plot point, but I can't really think that he did, considering the importance of the moment, and the meticulous care he was known for.

Of course, anything is possible, and your mileage may vary.

 

[Flammifer]

Neat supposition, No One In Particular,

However, suppose instead that if a Ring-wielder dies, with the Ring in possession, the Ring disappears.

We have no idea what happens to a Ring of Power if the wielder dies. The Ring slipped off Isildur's finger, before he died (and he may never have actually 'wielded' the Ring, beyond using it to make him invisible). (Except in the case of Sauron, and the One Ring. He died and the Ring survived, to be cut from his hand by Isildur. However Sauron is a special case, as 'died' does not really describe what happened to him. His 'body' died in the Battle of the Last Alliance, but his spirit did not, and did not pass from Middle-earth.)

The only other wielders of Rings of Power that died that we know of are presumably the Dwarf-lords (four of them) who lost their Rings to Dragon-fire. Probably the Dragon-fire consumed the Dwarf-lords and their Rings simultaneously. But it may be that the death of the Dwarf Ring-wielders by Dragon-fire, caused the Dwarf Rings to disappear (rather than the Dragon-fire acting on the Rings directly).

So, it is quite possible that the death of the Witch-king destroys his Ring as well, and Gandalf does not have to worry about it being picked up on the battlefield?

 

[No One in Particular]

Anything is possible. I feel like Sauron keeping the rings safely at home in the lockbox just the most likely.

 

[Flammifer]

It is certainly possible. However, I don't think there is any firm evidence either way.

 

[Rachel Port]

When did Gil-Galad give his ring to Elrond? I've always imagined it was as he was dying, but whether he told Elrond to take it when he died or handed it to him I never considered. But it could be an instance of a ring not disappearing at the wielder's death. But two of the Elven rings passed to second wielders in one way or another, as well as the One Ring. That rather makes the disappearing/disintegrating less likely - not even the One was tied to any specific person.

 

[Flammifer]

Well, the Ring might not disappear at the wielder's death if the wielder has already given it to someone else? (The history of the Dwarvish Rings indicates that.) Also, even if Gil-Galad died with his Ring on his finger, he, presumably, never wielded it. The Elven Rings were hidden when Sauron made the One, and not used until Sauron was presumed gone, after the Battle of the Last Alliance, and after Gil-Galad's death. Gil-Galad, I assume, was not really 'bonded' to his Ring.

We know that there is some sort of relationship between Rings of Power and the Death of Mortals (not including Dwarves). The Rings extend the life-span of Men and Hobbits, and stave off death. It is not inconceivable (though there is no proof) that this relationship requires the Rings to vanish if the wielder does die?

 

[Rachel Port]

We also know that at least one dwarf ring passed through generations before Sauron recaptured it. Rings are not tied to specific owners. I can't think of a reason for a ring to vanish/disintegrate if the bearer dies. And what about Deagol? He may not have had the One Ring for long, but he did claim it.

 

[Anthony Lawther]

We have been working with the obligation of the Nazgûl to return to Mordor as a given truth, when it is actually only a statement of hope by Gandalf:

'Eight out of the Nine are accounted for at least,' said Gandalf. 'It is rash to be too sure, yet I think that we may hope now that the Ringwraiths were scattered, and have been obliged to return as best they could to their Master in Mordor, empty and shapeless.

This uncertainty could also explain the scouts heading into the Ettenmoors, and through the Gladden Fields: The other potential rally points with enough spiritual relevance to the Enemy and his forces would be Carn Dum, and Dol Guldur.
Presumably, the Nazgûl travelling to either of these locations would have a discernable effect on the wildlife or evil aligned entities (trolls, goblins, etc). In this presumption, by going as far as the Ettenmoors, the skirts of Southern Mirkwood, and Tharbad, the scouts should sense any disturbance from the passage of the Nazgûl, and get a sense of which direction and how far they have gone. A lack of evidence in any direction might then suggest that Mordor was the rally point.

This presumption has the benefit of helping to explain some of the scouting missions, and eliminates the need for elaborate theories of supernatural boosts by Sauron, or Rings that vanish upon the deaths of their wielders.

It is difficult to reconcile the Nazgûl's functional blindness in the physical realm with wearing of their Rings (long-term or short), given that all of the Mortals wearing the One Ring don't seem to have any impediment to their vision (movies aside). In fact Gollum seems surprised at first that others can't see him while wearing the Ring, but any sort of vision modification would at the very least lessen such a surprise if not eliminate it.
This brings me back to the idea that the Nazgûl's wraithification (and vision as a result) came from some other method, possibly the use of Morgul Blades, or similar. Again, we have only Gandalf's conclusions to suggest that this is the action of the Rings, taken to the extreme, and no evidence to counter it; An absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.

Given the fact of the Nazgûl's functional blindness in the physical realm, and the fact that they seem to see Frodo perfectly clearly when he is wearing the Ring (and when he is on the edge of wraithification) it would seem that the details of their gear (under their cloaks) are for the benefit of those in the spirit realm. Whether these are 'memory' of the Nazgûl, part of 'Sauron's boost', or actual garments rendered invisible by their Rings doesn't seem to be answered by the text.

So we are left with supposition to work with:
1. 'Memory': seems to fit with self-identity and the spirit realm.
2. Part of 'Sauron's boost': seems like an unreasonable level of effort on Sauron's part. He could just as easily give each of them a 'spiritual colour' or some other simpler means to allow them to identify and distinguish each other.
3. Actual garments: The simplest answer if you ignore the cloaks, and the fact that the Witch-King is seen to be wearing a kingly crown at the gates of Minas Tirith. This might have been a report made to the author by Gandalf, enabled to see the crown by his Elven Ring, if it weren't for the next chapter where only Eowyn and Merry were witnesses:

Upon it sat a shape, black-mantled, huge and threatening. A crown of steel he bore, but between rim and robe naught was there to see, save only a deadly gleam of eyes: the Lord of the Nazgûl. To the air he had returned, summoning his steed ere the darkness failed, and now he was come again, bringing ruin, turning hope to despair, and victory to death. A great black mace he wielded.

So we are left with a quandary: at some points the gear and garments are invisible, yet at others they are visible. Either the Nazgûl or their gear are different between events, and to me it seems more credible that the gear is what changes, with the crown, mantle, and hauberk surviving the death of the Witch-King. This makes option 3 problematic.

Regarding corporeality of the Nazgûl, some seem to have misinterpreted the text:

So passed the sword of the Barrow-downs, work of Westernesse. But glad would he have been to know its fate who wrought it slowly long ago in the North-kingdom when the Dúnedain were young, and chief among their foes was the dread realm of Angmar and its sorcerer king. No other blade, not though mightier hands had wielded it, would have dealt that foe a wound so bitter, cleaving the undead flesh, breaking the spell that knit his unseen sinews to his will.

So, the language of the passage certainly suggests invisible (unseen) corporeality (cleaving of flesh), and the spell did not knit the body together, but knit the sinews to the will; the spell gave control, not being. This doesn't fit well with the 'Sauron's boost' idea for me, counting out option 2. The closest I can come to accepting this, is that Sauron uses a spell to knit their wills to their own invisible corpses to animate them, due to some disconnection at some point in the past. This seems more like repair work than boosting.

Unfortunately, there's not much in the text to support or deny option 1, so I tentatively suggest option 1, with option 3 in second place as it would require an 'anti-invisibility treatment' for the garments and gear that are visible, but we have no real evidence for such a treatment.

 

[Flammifer]

Good logic Anthony,

I would add some possibilities.

It could well be (indeed, I think it most likely) that the 'spell which knit his unseen sinews to his will' was not a spell by Sauron, but the spell of the Nine Rings. It is that spell, presumably, which chained the spirits of the Nine to their bodies, extending their life, and preventing the exit of their spirits from Arda. That is the spell which, when broken, would precipitate the instantaneous exit of the spirit of a Nazgul from Arda.

The clothing of the Nazgul that is visible normally need not be spelled to remain visible by Sauron. The Witch-king is so called because he was a mighty sorcerer. Possible that he was able to provide visible clothing to mask the otherwise invisible forms of the Nazgul.

 

[Rachel Port]

So passed the sword of the Barrow-downs, work of Westernesse. But glad would he have been to know its fate who wrought it slowly long ago in the North-kingdom when the Dúnedain were young, and chief among their foes was the dread realm of Angmar and its sorcerer king. No other blade, not though mightier hands had wielded it, would have dealt that foe a wound so bitter, cleaving the undead flesh, breaking the spell that knit his unseen sinews to his will.

So, the language of the passage certainly suggests invisible (unseen) corporeality (cleaving of flesh), and the spell did not knit the body together, but knit the sinews to the will; the spell gave control, not being. This doesn't fit well with the 'Sauron's boost' idea for me, counting out option 2. The closest I can come to accepting this, is that Sauron uses a spell to knit their wills to their own invisible corpses to animate them, due to some disconnection at some point in the past. This seems more like repair work than boosting.

To me, the quoted passage suggests that it's the Witch King's will that maintains the corporeal presence in the physical world, not necessarily that there is a body that is simply invisible. I don't think, for example, that a stronger spell could make him visible. But it also gives another interpretation to Sauron's "boost:" that on the trip to search for the Shire and the pursuit of Frodo, it's was Sauron's will that gave shape to the Nazgul, and the boost allowed the Nazgul's own wills to do this. It would explain the need to return to Mordor. There is some evidence that the Nazgul without some will can appear in the physical world simply as shadows that bring terror, without shape - there needs to be some will strong enough to bring whatever remains of their corporeal beings into this world from the spirit world where they otherwise exist.

 

[Flammifer]

Or, does this suggest that it is really Merry's strike, with his enchanted sword, which does in the Witch-king? Not Eowyn's strike?

I don't think that close reading supports the interpretation that the Witch-king's will maintains his corporeal presence. Look at the construction of the sentence. It is the spell, which knit's his unseen sinews to his will. Without the spell, of course, his sinews would not be knit to his will, because he would be long dead, his spirit gone from Arda, and his sinews turned to dust.

That spell is specifically the spell which Gandalf attributes to the Great Rings. "A mortal, Frodo, who keeps one of the Great Rings, does not die, but he does not grow or obtain more life, he merely continues, until at last every minute is a weariness." Thus, it is the Ring which creates the spell which knits the useen sinews (the Ring also is what makes the sinews unseen) to the will of the Nazgul.

I think it is pretty clear that the spell here is the spell of the Ring, not a boost from Sauron.

It is the strike of Merry's enchanted sword which breaks that spell. So, the Witch-king's spirit is presumably on its way out of Arda, when Eowyn strikes him between crown and mantle.

 

[Jim Deutch]

a raging flood that could have carried such things away as they obviously carried some of the horses, much heavier than boots, swords, etc.

A vigorous mountain stream in flood with "grinding boulders" does much more than carry things away: it tends to bury them under tons of rock, completely redistributing huge piles of rock, gravel and sand and vastly altering the streambed. Still, it is a bit puzzling that they found only one cloak, and zero out of eighteen boots.

 

[Jim Deutch]

So we are left with a quandary: at some points the gear and garments are invisible, yet at others they are visible.

And don't forget that when Bilbo wielded Sting against the spiders, the sword was visible, though Bilbo, and whatever waistcoat buttons he may have still had, was not.