Lithlad
| Lithlad | |
|---|---|
| Plain | |
| General Information | |
| Location | South of the Ered Lithui, east of the Plateau of Gorgoroth[1][2][3] |
| Type | Plain |
| Description | Plain |
Lithlad was a plain in Mordor.[4]
The mountain range of the Ephel Duath and the mountain range of the Ered Lithui formed a great wall around the mournful plains of Lithlad and Gorgoroth and the inland sea of Nurnen in the middle.[4]
Etymology[edit]
Lithlad is a Sindarin name. It means "plain of ashes".[5] It is a compound of lith ("ash") and lad ("plain").[6]
Other versions of the legendarium[edit]
The label "Lithlad" appears on the First Map of The Lord of the Rings south of the Ered Lithui and east of Barad-dûr. The mountain spur that branches off from the Ered Lithui to the east of Barad-dûr, longer than the short spur on whose end Barad-dûr is located, does not exist on the first map.[1][2] The label "Lithlad" appears on the Second Map of The Lord of the Rings in approximately the same location south of the Ered Lithui and east of Barad-dûr and the longer mountain spur.[3] The label "Lithlad" does not appear on the Third Map of The Lord of the Rings that was drawn by J.R.R. Tolkien.[7]. It also does not appear on either the General Map of Middle-earth or The West of Middle-earth at the End of the Third Age maps that were drawn by Christopher Tolkien and published with The Lord of the Rings and Unfinished Tales of Númenor and Middle-earth respectively.
In draft 'A' of the chapter The Tower of Cirith Ungol it is mentioned that the eastern face of the tower stood up from a shelf in the mountain wall with four pointed bastions with sides facing north-east and north-west and that the windows of the tower stared over the plains of Gorgoroth and Lithlad.[8]
Wayne G. Hammond and Christina Scull state that Lithlad is at the feet of the Ered Lithui.[6]
Mark Fisher places Lithlad between the mountain spur on whose end Barad-dûr is located and the longer mountain spur that branches off from the Ered Lithui to the east of Barad-dûr and incorrectly claims that this position is based on The First Map of The Lord of the Rings.[9]
Although Karen Wynn Fonstad was aware of the location of Lithlad on The First Map of The Lord of the Rings, she places Lithlad on the north-western shore of the Sea of Núrnen in Nurn.[10]
Robert Foster places Lithlad either in the southwest or the east of Mordor.[11]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, "First Map of The Lord of the Rings", (accessed 11 January 2022), map square P11
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Treason of Isengard, "XV. The First Map of The Lord of the Rings", "Maps IIIA and III", map square P18, p. 309
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The War of the Ring, "Part Three: Minas Tirith", "XIV. The Second Map", The Second Map (East), map squares Q17 and Q18 p. 435
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Two Towers, "The Black Gate is Closed", second paragraph
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, "Unfinished index for The Lord of the Rings", in Wayne G. Hammond and Christina Scull (eds), The Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion, p. 457
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Wayne G. Hammond and Christina Scull (eds), The Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion, p. 457
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, "Maps: MIDDLE-EARTH", (accessed 11 January 2022)
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Sauron Defeated, "Part One: The End of the Third Age: II. The Tower of Kirith Ungol", p. 20
- ↑ Mark Fisher, "Lithlad", The Encyclopedia of Arda (accessed 25 December 2021)
- ↑ Karen Wynn Fonstad The Atlas of Middle-earth, p. 91 with note 31 p. 93
- ↑ Robert Foster, The Complete Guide to Middle-earth, entry "LITHLAD"
