The Elders are a ruling council in Isaac Asimov's Foundation series.
Description[]
Elders are the highest authority in Mycogen's theocratic society, the Elders are led by the Elder Chairman, referred to as the High Elder (such as Sunmaster Fourteen). They are the ultimate arbiters of law and custom, possess the authority to interpret the Book of Rules, and hold the power of life and death over inhabitants and outsiders alike for crimes of sacrilege. Their private sanctuary within the Sacratorium is the Elders' Aerie.