A Map of Middle-earth
"A Map of Middle-earth" is the name of two colour posters by different artists, published in 1965 and 1970 by the American and British publishers of J. R. R. Tolkien's book The Lord of the Rings. Both posters were based on Tolkien's maps and work by his son Christopher to depict the fictional Middle-earth. Neither of these maps cover the whole continent of Middle-earth; instead they portray the north-western part of the continent, where the story of The Lord of the Rings takes place. The poster map by Pauline Baynes has been described as "iconic".[1]
Barbara Remington[]
The earlier poster, signed "BRem" (Barbara Remington), was published in 1965 by Ballantine Books[2] and features border images adapted from Remington's cover designs for the 1965 Ballantine paperback edition of The Lord of the Rings.
Pauline Baynes[]
The second version, by Pauline Baynes, was published in 1970 by George Allen & Unwin[3] in the UK and Ballantine Books in the USA. It features ten small inset illustrations of important locations from the story. The poster is framed at the top by a row of nine figures representing the members of the "Fellowship of the Ring" setting out on their quest. At the bottom is an array of antagonists from the novel, including the nine Black Riders, Gollum, Shelob, and various Orcs. The poster has become iconic.[1] Tolkien approved of Baynes's illustrations of his books, and was pleased with at least some of her vignettes on the poster map.[4]
References[]
- ^ a b c Kennedy, Maev (3 May 2016). "Tolkien annotated map of Middle-earth acquired by Bodleian library". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
- ^ Hammond, Wayne G.; Scull, Christina (14 February 2011). "Addenda and Corrigenda to The J.R.R. Tolkien Companion and Guide (2006), Vol. 1: Chronology". Retrieved 28 March 2021.
- ^ Hammond, Wayne G.; Anderson, Douglas A. (1993). J.R.R. Tolkien: A Descriptive Bibliography. St. Paul's Bibliographies. p. 376. ISBN 978-1-873040-11-9.
- ^ McIlwaine, Catherine (2018). Tolkien: Maker of Middle-earth. Bodleian Library. p. 384. ISBN 978-1851244850.
External links[]
- Map of Middle-earth, showing the movements of characters from both The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit film series by Peter Jackson
- In the Beginning was the Word: How Medieval Text Became Fantasy Maps tracing the roots of Tolkien's mapping influences to medieval prefatory textual practices.
- Posters
- Fictional maps
- Middle-earth locations
- Ballantine Books books