1967 Middle Earth
By: Barbara Remington
Date: 1967 (circa) Ballantine Books
Dimensions: 36 x 23.5 inches (91.44 x 59.7 cm)
This remarkable, colorful map by Barbara Remington depicts Middle Earth, the incredible legendary world created by J.R.R. Tolkien. His most widely read works, The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, are set entirely in Middle-earth, and the name has become a short-hand for the legendarium (his works regarding his imaginary world) and Tolkien's fictional world itself, which he named Arda.
The map was based on cartography drawn by Tolkien himself to depict the fictional region of Middle-earth. It portrays the north-western part of the continent, where the story of The Lord of the Rings takes place. Interestingly, Remington had not read Tolkien’s works before undertaking the map, and later said that it would have been significantly different had she done so. Despite this, the map is evocative of his works, providing a guide to the adventures narrated in the tomes.
The border is comprised of fantastical creatures, cobwebs, spiders and a hobbit community set against a hillside. A full moon is the backdrop for a flock of birds flying through the night sky, and an erupting volcano fills a portion of the border, along with iconic symbols of Viking culture such as ships and dragons. Snippets from the stories themselves are to be found pictorially depicted both in the border and entering the image. A gorgeous compass rose embellishes the map.
By 1911 when Tolkien entered Exeter College, Oxford, he had mastered a number of languages including Greek, Latin and a number of others, both modern and ancient, notably Gothic, and later Finnish, in addition to making up his own languages. It is believed that much of the inspiration for his later works came from his study of these languages and early writings of each.
Condition: This colorful vintage poster in A condition is linen-backed for preservation. Artistically restored left side. Some discoloration is apparent within the map.
Inventory #11659
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