Temple of Prometheus

This article focuses on the Enchanted Forest location.
For the magical fire, see Flame of Prometheus.

This structure marks the end of Prometheus' theft. The stolen flame burned on for a great while... Long enough for Excalibur to be both forged and broken here. This is where the first dark one killed Nimue, the woman I loved.

—Merlin to Emma^src

The Temple of Prometheus^[1] is an Enchanted Forest location^{[nb 1]} featured on ABC's Once Upon a Time. It appears in the seventh episode of the fifth season.

History

Before First Curse

Merlin, an immortal sorcerer, falls in love with a mortal woman named Nimue. The sorcerer thinks about marrying her, but realizes he'd have to watch her die because of his immortality. They decide to reforge the Holy Grail, using the Flame of Prometheus, into a sword to cut away his magic so that they can grow old together. The two of them travel to the Temple of Prometheus, where the flame is located. Unbeknownst to them, Vortigan, the man responsible for destroying Nimue's village, follows them. At the temple, Merlin transforms the Grail into a sword, Excalibur. Suddenly, Nimue spots Vortigan and she alerts Merlin to his presence.

Vortigan attempts to make Merlin forfeit the sword to him and takes Nimue hostage. She breaks free and tries to kill Vortigan, but he fatally stabs her instead. After she seemingly dies in his arms, Merlin confronts Vortigan, whose heart is unexpectedly ripped out by Nimue. Only then, she reveals to Merlin that she drank from the Holy Grail when he wasn't watching, thereby making herself immortal too. He begs her not to crush the heart, as doing so will make her dark. Unable to shake her grudge, she pulverizes Vortigan's heart to ash, triggering a monstrous change in her physical appearance and making her the first Dark One. Fearing Merlin will try to take her power, Nimue smashes the sword, severing the tip from the blade, and steals the last spark ember. Merlin later creates the Dark One Dagger from the tip. ("Nimue")

After Second Curse

In a plan to unite Excalibur and the dagger, Merlin travels with Emma, the current Dark One, to the temple. At the site, Emma harnesses the dagger, summoning the spirit of the first Dark One, who is revealed to be Nimue, Merlin's lost love. However, a forlorn Merlin stresses to Emma that the Nimue they both see is not the woman he loved then. Nimue attempts to attack Merlin, but Emma jumps to his defense. The first Dark One forces Emma to begin strangulating Merlin, insisting it must be done, since the sorcerer is keeping Emma from being her true self as the Dark One. As Merlin struggles against her grasp on his throat, a panicked Emma tries resisting, to no avail. Only when Nimue insinuates that Emma will be nothing without the darkness, Emma gains the strength to fight back and take the ember from Nimue.("Nimue")

Trivia

On-Screen Notes

As the Temple is extremely close to the Vault of the Dark One,^{[nb 1]} the Temple is also a day's ride from Camelot. ("The Broken Kingdom")

Filming Locations

The scenes at the Temple of Prometheus were filmed in Lynn Canyon Park in the District of North Vancouver.^[2]

Appearances

Once Upon a Time: Season Five
"The Dark Swan":	"The Price":	"Siege Perilous":	"The Broken Kingdom":	"Dreamcatcher":	"The Bear and the Bow":	"Nimue":	"Birth":	"The Bear King":	"Broken Heart":	"Swan Song":
Absent	Absent	Absent	Absent	Absent	Absent	Appears	Absent	Absent	Absent	Absent
"Souls of the Departed":	"Labor of Love":	"Devil's Due":	"The Brothers Jones":	"Our Decay":	"Her Handsome Hero":	"Ruby Slippers":	"Sisters":	"Firebird":	"Last Rites":	"Only You":	"An Untold Story":
Absent	Absent	Absent	Absent	Absent	Absent	Absent	Absent	Absent	Absent	Absent	Absent

References

↑ File:507ConceptArt1.jpg
↑ Craig Clarke (@vfxsup) on Instagram: gah how much fun was it to work with Caroline and Elliot... heaps I tell you.. heaps!! 😂 (Lynn Canyon Park) (January 24, 2019). (backup link) (archive screenshot)
Lawrence Andreutti. Once Upon A Time September 18, 2015 (September 18, 2015). "Once Upon a Time set photos from Lynn Canyon Park, North Vancouver, BC (Camelot) taken on September 18, 2015." (archive copy)

Notes

↑ ^1.0 ^1.1 In "Quiet Minds", Lumiere states that the Vault of the Dark One was where the first Dark One was made, born out of the Darkness. However, "Nimue" reveals that the first Dark One was actually made at the Temple of Prometheus, suggesting that the Vault was built extremely close to the Temple, and would therefore be located in the Enchanted Forest.

[1] File:507ConceptArt1.jpg

[3] Craig Clarke (@vfxsup) on Instagram: gah how much fun was it to work with Caroline and Elliot... heaps I tell you.. heaps!! 😂 (Lynn Canyon Park) (January 24, 2019). (backup link) (archive screenshot)
Lawrence Andreutti. Once Upon A Time September 18, 2015 (September 18, 2015). "Once Upon a Time set photos from Lynn Canyon Park, North Vancouver, BC (Camelot) taken on September 18, 2015." (archive copy)

[vault-2] 1.0 ^1.1 In "Quiet Minds", Lumiere states that the Vault of the Dark One was where the first Dark One was made, born out of the Darkness. However, "Nimue" reveals that the first Dark One was actually made at the Temple of Prometheus, suggesting that the Vault was built extremely close to the Temple, and would therefore be located in the Enchanted Forest.

[1]

[nb 1]

[2]