
Tolkien's annotated map of Middle-earth discovered in copy of Lord of the Rings - benbreen
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/oct/23/jrr-tolkien-middle-earth-annotated-map-blackwells-lord-of-the-rings
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jfaucett
"It shows what Blackwell’s called “the exacting nature” of Tolkien’s creative
vision: he corrects place names, provides extra ones, and gives Baynes a host
of suggestions about the map’s various flora and fauna."

You've got to respect the man for his attention to detail. To the outsider it
might seem as if it were near insanity levels (fully creating multiple
language families for instance
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languages_constructed_by_J._R....](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languages_constructed_by_J._R._R._Tolkien)).
But you feel the histories and mythology behind the languages in the works.
There's just an amazing vitality and realism in his universe that I've
personally never felt in another work of fantasy as good as those other books
might be.

I read a biography about him many years ago, and if I remember correctly he
wrote the stories for the languages not the other way around, since he
discovered that his languages needed a mythology and history in order to be
realistic.

~~~
qznc
On the other hand, Tolkien had no clue about geology. If you think about how
rivers flow from mountains to oceans, the map of Middleearth is unrealistic.
Anduin heads straight towards hills and mountains (Emyn Muil and Osgiliath)?
In the north west, Luhn/Lune flows south to the Grey Havens instead of the
short way to the northern ocean? The sea of Rhun and Nurnen are both dead (no
outflow)?

(disclaimer: I still love and respect Tolkiens work! Especially the
Silmarillion.)

~~~
vlehto
The map doesn't show elevations. Medieval maps work that way, they only show
notable hills and cliffs, but no slow descents.

Here's similar from Norway

[http://thumbs.dreamstime.com/z/old-map-
norway-11431502.jpg](http://thumbs.dreamstime.com/z/old-map-
norway-11431502.jpg)

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nathancahill
A high resolution stitched map:
[http://i.imgur.com/lWAFuHe.jpg](http://i.imgur.com/lWAFuHe.jpg)

Made with pictures from here: [http://www.citylab.com/design/2015/10/a-map-of-
middle-earth-...](http://www.citylab.com/design/2015/10/a-map-of-middle-earth-
annotated-by-jrr-tolkien/412105/)

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milansm
"The novelist also uses Belgrade, Cyprus, and Jerusalem as other reference
points, and according to Blackwell’s suggests that “the city of Ravenna is the
inspiration behind Minas Tirith - a key location in the third book of the Lord
of The Rings trilogy”."

Fun fact: Belgrade (Београд), capital of Serbia, literary means "the white
city" in Serbian.

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davidw
Minis Tirith ... Ravenna?! It's flat there:

[https://www.google.com/maps/place/Ravenna+RA,+Italy/@44.3775...](https://www.google.com/maps/place/Ravenna+RA,+Italy/@44.3775632,12.1204286,11z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x477df9505a24da17:0x2a74a33c9c54a776!5m1!1e4)

Maybe he was thinking of [http://www.incomingpartners.it/wp-
content/uploads/2011/05/sa...](http://www.incomingpartners.it/wp-
content/uploads/2011/05/sanmarino_panorama.jpg) San Marino.

~~~
abritinthebay
Probably referencing this fortified town there:
[http://media.royalcaribbean.com/content/shared_assets/images...](http://media.royalcaribbean.com/content/shared_assets/images/ports/hero/RAN_01.jpg)

Which TOTALLY makes sense.

~~~
davidw
That's what I just wrote: San Marino. That's what that picture is of, not
Ravenna.

Of course, it's not your fault that Google returns the wrong pictures, but
definitely a different place.

