"J.R.R. Tolkien - The History of Middle-Earth - 00" - читать интересную книгу автора (Tolkien J.R.R)

translated into several languages. Regrettably, I had to defer the whole project for over a year,
and in the process lost several of the translation teams.

Had it not been for the interest expressed in the project by Matt Tinaglia, the third edition might
still be waiting for me to get back to it. But once he set the wheels into motion, taking on
responsibility for the whole project, from editing to designing the book, I realized that this
edition required something special. And since we had decided to publish it as a downloadable
eBook, I thought, why not include some fan artwork?

Two artists, Anke Eissmann and Rich Sullivan, responded to my inquiries. I had hoped to
feature works by a few other artists whose talents I had come to appreciate, but I was unable to
locate them. So, I hope you enjoy the selections I've made, and the updated essays as well. And
a Spanish-language translation team, organized by Leandro of Elfenomeno, has worked
steadfastly on two translations of the book. I'm still hopeful of seeing the Spanish edition
completed.

Thank you for your support and interest through the years. We have corrected as many errors as
possible, and some of the information has been updated, too. May all your Tolkien reading be
enjoyable.




-8-
 Essays On Middle-earth


Chapter 1:
The Geography of Arda
The Continents Of Arda
Since Tolkien's mythology involves a change in the form and nature of the world, it's difficult to
describe Arda physically. For example, Numenor existed only during the Second Age. Even if
one arbitrarily divided Arda's geographical history into two periods (pre-Change and post-
Change), Numenor itself would force a division of geological as well as political periods. And
should one not consider the changes to Arda after the destruction of Illuin and Ormal, the two
Lamps of the Valar in Middle-earth? Yet Tolkien wrote very little about "historical" matters
prior to the destruction of the Lamps, so it seems pointless to try to document the geography of
Arda for that time period. His conception of the "primitive" Arda was quite rough and never fully
developed. In fact, had Tolkien realized his intention to rewrite the entire mythology, all the
various lands he originally envisioned might have been erased from the тАЬrecord.тАЭ

I've decided there were five "continents" in Arda at various times after the destruction of the two
Lamps. In fact, Endor itself probably would be considered two continents, which we might refer
to as Forendor and Harendor. But we know very little of what Harendor was like.

Aman was the western-most continent. It was changed in shape by the Valar on at least two
occasions, and perhaps went through other changes when Arda was changed. These were the
Undying Lands, also known as the Uttermost West and the Undying West. The Valar lived here
with the Maiar and the Eldar.