diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 20852cf..304f913 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -19,6 +19,8 @@ and this project adheres to [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/spec/v2.0.0
 
 ### Fixed
 
+- The immutable value `Model.Node` tree type is now depth-safe. An `Element` previously stored its children inline (the enum was `indirect`), so a `Node`'s recursive layout made building, comparing, hashing, and releasing a deeply-nested tree recurse one native frame per level and overflow the stack (on a constrained stack such as a Swift Task, as shallow as a few thousand deep). `Element` now holds its children behind a copy-on-write reference (`ElementStorage`): the `Node` enum is no longer `indirect`, so it is a fixed-size value, and `==`, `hashValue`, and release all walk the tree iteratively through explicit work stacks. Release flattens only storage it solely owns, so a copy-on-write sibling keeps its subtree. Value semantics are unchanged (copying a node still copies its children, lazily) and `Element`/`Node` remain `Equatable`, `Hashable`, and `Sendable`. A 50000-deep tree now builds, compares, hashes, and releases in a fraction of a second with no crash. (Completes the value-`Node` half of #341.)
+
 - The mutable `Model.TreeNode` tree type is now depth-safe: building one from a value `Node`, projecting it back with `node`, and releasing it all run in bounded native stack instead of recursing one frame per level. Construction (`TreeNode(_:)`) and projection (`node`/`projectedChildren`) drive explicit post-order work stacks, and `deinit` flattens its subtree into a heap worklist before releasing, so a deeply-nested tree no longer overflows the stack through a recursive chain of child releases. The teardown only flattens nodes it solely owns (`isKnownUniquelyReferenced`), so a child still referenced elsewhere keeps its subtree. A 60000-deep tree releases in well under a tenth of a second; behaviour for ordinary trees is unchanged. The validator walk and the XPath descendant axis (`AxisNavigation.appendDescendants`) were made iterative for the same reason. (Part of #341. The immutable value `Node`'s own recursive release, and XPath result ordering/dedup, are still depth-bounded and tracked there.)
 
 - Rejecting a billion-laughs document is no longer exponential in nesting depth. The "does this entity produce markup" check (`splitAtMarkupEntity` / `producesMarkup`) recursed into every reference of every replacement without memoizing, so a chain `lol8 -> 10x lol7 -> 100x lol6 -> ...` was traversed O(references^depth) times. The check is now memoized per entity name (the property depends only on the fixed entity graph), making it O(entities). A classic eight-level billion-laughs with DTD processing enabled drops from about 18 s to about 0.6 s (now bounded by the expansion budget, not the traversal), with no change to which documents are accepted; a cyclic entity is still rejected.
diff --git a/Sources/Model/Element.swift b/Sources/Model/Element.swift
index eeaed3a..97cbd36 100644
--- a/Sources/Model/Element.swift
+++ b/Sources/Model/Element.swift
@@ -1,9 +1,41 @@
 public extension PureXML.Model {
     /// An XML element: a qualified name, ordered attributes, and ordered child nodes.
-    struct Element: Equatable, Hashable, Sendable {
+    ///
+    /// A value type with full value semantics: copying an element copies its
+    /// children (lazily, copy-on-write). The children are held behind a reference
+    /// (``ElementStorage``) so a deeply-nested tree neither overflows the stack on
+    /// release nor on equality and hashing, which walk the tree iteratively.
+    struct Element: Sendable {
         public var name: QualifiedName
         public var attributes: [Attribute]
-        public var children: [Node]
+        /// Copy-on-write backing; `children` is the public, value-semantic view.
+        var storage: ElementStorage
+
+        /// The element's child nodes. Reads share the backing storage; a write
+        /// first copies the storage if it is shared, preserving value semantics.
+        ///
+        /// The `_modify` accessor yields the backing array in place (after the
+        /// copy-on-write check), so an in-place mutation such as
+        /// `element.children.append(_:)` does not copy the whole array on every
+        /// call. Without it a computed property would read, mutate a temporary,
+        /// and write back, making repeated appends quadratic (which is exactly the
+        /// pattern the parser uses while building an element).
+        public var children: [Node] {
+            get { storage.children }
+            _modify {
+                if !isKnownUniquelyReferenced(&storage) {
+                    storage = ElementStorage(storage.children)
+                }
+                yield &storage.children
+            }
+            set {
+                if isKnownUniquelyReferenced(&storage) {
+                    storage.children = newValue
+                } else {
+                    storage = ElementStorage(newValue)
+                }
+            }
+        }
 
         public init(
             name: QualifiedName,
@@ -12,7 +44,7 @@ public extension PureXML.Model {
         ) {
             self.name = name
             self.attributes = attributes
-            self.children = children
+            storage = ElementStorage(children)
         }
 
         public init(
@@ -40,3 +72,16 @@ public extension PureXML.Model {
         }
     }
 }
+
+extension PureXML.Model.Element: Equatable, Hashable {
+    /// Value equality over the whole subtree, compared iteratively (see
+    /// ``PureXML/Model/Node`` `==`) so a deeply-nested element does not recurse.
+    public static func == (lhs: Self, rhs: Self) -> Bool {
+        PureXML.Model.Node.treesEqual(.element(lhs), .element(rhs))
+    }
+
+    /// Hashes the whole subtree iteratively, consistent with `==`.
+    public func hash(into hasher: inout Hasher) {
+        PureXML.Model.Node.element(self).hash(into: &hasher)
+    }
+}
diff --git a/Sources/Model/ElementStorage.swift b/Sources/Model/ElementStorage.swift
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..cb674d6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/Sources/Model/ElementStorage.swift
@@ -0,0 +1,40 @@
+extension PureXML.Model {
+    /// Copy-on-write backing for an ``Element``'s children.
+    ///
+    /// `Element` is a value type, but its children must live behind a reference so
+    /// the tree's depth does not become part of any value's recursive layout: a
+    /// chain of value-nested children would otherwise release one native frame per
+    /// level and overflow the stack on a deeply-nested document. Holding children
+    /// in this class gives the tree exactly one place to release them, where a
+    /// custom `deinit` can flatten the subtree iteratively.
+    ///
+    /// `@unchecked Sendable`: the class is mutable, but ``Element`` only ever
+    /// mutates `children` after copying a shared box (the copy-on-write check in
+    /// `Element.children`'s setter), so a box reachable from more than one value is
+    /// never written. That is the same discipline the standard library's own
+    /// copy-on-write containers rely on to be `Sendable`.
+    final class ElementStorage: @unchecked Sendable {
+        var children: [PureXML.Model.Node]
+
+        init(_ children: [PureXML.Model.Node]) {
+            self.children = children
+        }
+
+        /// Releases the subtree without recursing on depth. A naive release walks
+        /// one native frame per level (each box releasing its children's boxes);
+        /// instead each uniquely-owned descendant's children are moved into a flat
+        /// heap worklist and cleared before that node is released, so every box
+        /// frees with empty children and the teardown stays flat. A node whose
+        /// storage is still shared (a copy-on-write sibling holds it) is left
+        /// intact and tears down later through this same `deinit`.
+        deinit {
+            guard !children.isEmpty else { return }
+            var pending = children
+            children = []
+            while !pending.isEmpty {
+                var node = pending.removeLast()
+                node.drainUniquelyOwnedChildren(into: &pending)
+            }
+        }
+    }
+}
diff --git a/Sources/Model/Node.swift b/Sources/Model/Node.swift
index 6f05c68..a40d41d 100644
--- a/Sources/Model/Node.swift
+++ b/Sources/Model/Node.swift
@@ -2,7 +2,13 @@ public extension PureXML.Model {
     /// A node in an XML tree. The model preserves document order and the
     /// distinction between text, CDATA, comments, and processing instructions
     /// so that emitting can round-trip a parsed document.
-    indirect enum Node: Equatable, Hashable, Sendable {
+    ///
+    /// Not `indirect`: an element holds its children behind a reference
+    /// (``ElementStorage``), so a `Node` is a fixed-size value and the tree's
+    /// depth is not part of any value's layout. Equality, hashing, and release
+    /// all walk the tree iteratively, so an arbitrarily deep document never
+    /// overflows the call stack.
+    enum Node: Sendable {
         /// The root of a parsed document, holding its prolog and root element.
         case document([Node])
         /// An element with a name, attributes, and children.
@@ -23,3 +29,103 @@ public extension PureXML.Model {
         }
     }
 }
+
+extension PureXML.Model.Node: Equatable, Hashable {
+    public static func == (lhs: Self, rhs: Self) -> Bool {
+        treesEqual(lhs, rhs)
+    }
+
+    /// Whether two node trees are equal, compared iteratively through an explicit
+    /// pair stack so a deeply-nested tree does not recurse one frame per level.
+    static func treesEqual(_ lhs: Self, _ rhs: Self) -> Bool {
+        var stack: [(Self, Self)] = [(lhs, rhs)]
+        while let (left, right) = stack.popLast() {
+            switch (left, right) {
+            case let (.element(leftElement), .element(rightElement)):
+                guard leftElement.name == rightElement.name,
+                      leftElement.attributes == rightElement.attributes,
+                      leftElement.children.count == rightElement.children.count
+                else { return false }
+                for pair in zip(leftElement.children, rightElement.children) {
+                    stack.append(pair)
+                }
+            case let (.document(leftChildren), .document(rightChildren)):
+                guard leftChildren.count == rightChildren.count else { return false }
+                for pair in zip(leftChildren, rightChildren) {
+                    stack.append(pair)
+                }
+            default:
+                if !leavesEqual(left, right) { return false }
+            }
+        }
+        return true
+    }
+
+    /// Equality for the non-branch node kinds (and a kind mismatch); the branch
+    /// kinds are walked iteratively by ``treesEqual(_:_:)``.
+    private static func leavesEqual(_ left: Self, _ right: Self) -> Bool {
+        switch (left, right) {
+        case let (.text(leftValue), .text(rightValue)): leftValue == rightValue
+        case let (.cdata(leftValue), .cdata(rightValue)): leftValue == rightValue
+        case let (.comment(leftValue), .comment(rightValue)): leftValue == rightValue
+        case let (.processingInstruction(leftTarget, leftData), .processingInstruction(rightTarget, rightData)):
+            leftTarget == rightTarget && leftData == rightData
+        default: false
+        }
+    }
+
+    /// Hashes the whole subtree iteratively (pre-order), consistent with
+    /// ``treesEqual(_:_:)``: equal trees feed the hasher the same sequence.
+    public func hash(into hasher: inout Hasher) {
+        var stack: [Self] = [self]
+        while let node = stack.popLast() {
+            switch node {
+            case let .element(element):
+                hasher.combine(0)
+                hasher.combine(element.name)
+                hasher.combine(element.attributes)
+                hasher.combine(element.children.count)
+                for child in element.children {
+                    stack.append(child)
+                }
+            case let .document(children):
+                hasher.combine(1)
+                hasher.combine(children.count)
+                for child in children {
+                    stack.append(child)
+                }
+            case let .text(value):
+                hasher.combine(2)
+                hasher.combine(value)
+            case let .cdata(value):
+                hasher.combine(3)
+                hasher.combine(value)
+            case let .comment(value):
+                hasher.combine(4)
+                hasher.combine(value)
+            case let .processingInstruction(target, data):
+                hasher.combine(5)
+                hasher.combine(target)
+                hasher.combine(data)
+            }
+        }
+    }
+}
+
+extension PureXML.Model.Node {
+    /// Used by ``ElementStorage`` teardown: if this is an element whose backing
+    /// storage this node solely owns, move its children into `pending` and clear
+    /// them so the node releases flat; otherwise leave it untouched. Setting
+    /// `self` aside before the uniqueness check drops this node's own hold on the
+    /// storage, so the check counts only references held elsewhere (shared
+    /// copy-on-write siblings), which must keep their subtree.
+    mutating func drainUniquelyOwnedChildren(into pending: inout [Self]) {
+        guard case var .element(element) = self else { return }
+        self = .text("")
+        if isKnownUniquelyReferenced(&element.storage), !element.storage.children.isEmpty {
+            pending.append(contentsOf: element.storage.children)
+            element.storage.children = []
+        }
+        self = .element(element)
+    }
+}
diff --git a/Tests/ValueNodeDepthSafetyTests.swift b/Tests/ValueNodeDepthSafetyTests.swift
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8c9b5f7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/Tests/ValueNodeDepthSafetyTests.swift
@@ -0,0 +1,69 @@
+import Testing
+@testable import PureXML
+
+/// Depth safety and value semantics for the immutable value ``Node`` (#341).
+/// An element holds its children behind a copy-on-write reference, so a `Node`
+/// is a fixed-size value and building, comparing, hashing, and releasing a
+/// deeply-nested tree all run in bounded native stack rather than recursing one
+/// frame per level. These trees are built bottom-up (not parsed) so the test
+/// exercises the value type directly and stays fast.
+@Suite("Value Node depth safety")
+struct ValueNodeDepthSafetyTests {
+    /// A chain of `depth` nested single-child elements with a text leaf.
+    private func deepNode(_ depth: Int) -> PureXML.Model.Node {
+        var node: PureXML.Model.Node = .text("leaf")
+        for _ in 0 ..< depth {
+            node = .element(.init("a", attributes: [.init("x", "1")], children: [node]))
+        }
+        return node
+    }
+
+    @Test("building, comparing, hashing, and releasing a 50k-deep tree do not overflow")
+    func test_deepTreeIsBounded() {
+        var node: PureXML.Model.Node? = deepNode(50000)
+        let other = deepNode(50000)
+        #expect(node == other) // iterative equality over the whole depth
+        var hasher = Hasher()
+        node.hash(into: &hasher) // iterative hashing over the whole depth
+        _ = hasher.finalize()
+        node = nil // iterative release
+        #expect(node == nil)
+    }
+
+    @Test("equal deep trees hash equally; an unequal one differs")
+    func test_hashMatchesEquality() {
+        let first = deepNode(2000)
+        let second = deepNode(2000)
+        let shorter = deepNode(1999)
+        #expect(first == second)
+        #expect(first != shorter)
+        #expect(first.hashValue == second.hashValue)
+    }
+
+    @Test("copy-on-write: mutating a copy leaves the original untouched")
+    func test_copyOnWriteValueSemantics() {
+        var original = PureXML.Model.Element("root", children: [.element(.init("child"))])
+        let copy = original
+        original.children.append(.text("added"))
+        #expect(original.children.count == 2)
+        #expect(copy.children.count == 1)
+        #expect(original != copy)
+    }
+
+    @Test("a shared subtree survives when one owner is released")
+    func test_sharedSubtreeSurvivesPartialRelease() {
+        let shared = deepNode(3000)
+        var holder: PureXML.Model.Node? = .element(.init("wrap", children: [shared]))
+        holder = nil // releasing the wrapper must not tear down `shared`
+        #expect(holder == nil)
+        // `shared` is still usable: walking it does not crash and finds the leaf.
+        var current = shared
+        var steps = 0
+        while case let .element(element) = current, let first = element.children.first {
+            current = first
+            steps += 1
+        }
+        #expect(steps == 3000)
+        #expect(current == .text("leaf"))
+    }
+}
diff --git a/docs/validation-coverage-registry.txt b/docs/validation-coverage-registry.txt
index f50c5b8..69ea933 100644
--- a/docs/validation-coverage-registry.txt
+++ b/docs/validation-coverage-registry.txt
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ SUBJECT PureXML.Schema.SchemaTypeFact xsd-schema-consistency
 SUBJECT PureXML.Schema.ResolvedElement xsd-streaming-shallow
 
 EXCLUDE PureXML.Model.QualifiedName value type; lexical invariants at construction
+EXCLUDE PureXML.Model.ElementStorage copy-on-write backing for Element children; validated via Node
 EXCLUDE PureXML.Model.TreeNode mutable editor view of Node; validated via Node
 EXCLUDE PureXML.Model.TreeNodeKind tag enum; no invariants
 EXCLUDE PureXML.LintDiagnostic editor output; not user input