[J.R.R. Tolkien]; Barbara Remington [illus.]

[Poster] A Map of Middle Earth

New York: Ballantine Books, 1965. Very Good +. Item #48676

[New York]: Ballantine Books, [1965]. Full color illustrated poster, produced in tandem with the first American run of Ballantine paperback editions of The Lord of the Rings (95x65cm). $1.49 price intact at bottom right with "U8251" at bottom left. Gentle creasing and faint ripples from previous rolling; minor closed tears to margins, including through "Ballantine" at bottom right. Verso lightly toned, but overall a Very Good or better example.

Middle Earth, its topography and waterways drawn in detail, is surrounded by a border of fantastical creatures, bright colors, and an explosive Mount Doom. Red lines follow Bilbo's path through the terrain, including a red dot with the label "Bilbo Finds Ring," while a black dotted line marks out Frodo's journey.

Remington was not given enough time to read any of Tolkien's work before producing the cover art, since Ballantine was racing to beat out other American publishers with their paperbacks of the trilogy. She was thus obligated to draw covers based on what little she knew. The triptych she produced of Middle Earth, with its bizarre-looking creatures and brightly-colored landscapes, is repeated in the border here. While Tolkien vocally disliked Remington's cover art, American audiences loved it.

Only one holding listed in OCLC., at Harvard.

Price: $2,000.00