Straits of the World: Difference between revisions
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The '''Straits of the World''' was a strait of mountainous land linking the [[Great Gulf]] with the [[Sea of Helcar|Inland Sea of Helcar]] in the [[First Age]] of the world.<ref name=Ambar>{{SM|Ambar}} p. 259</ref> The Straits of the World appears only in early writings<ref name=Ambar>{{SM|Ambar}} p. 259</ref> before Tolkien envisioned the wide lands of [[Eriador]], [[Gondor]], and [[Mordor]] that lay east of the Great Gulf. | The '''Straits of the World''' was a strait of mountainous land linking the [[Great Gulf]] with the [[Sea of Helcar|Inland Sea of Helcar]] in the [[First Age]] of the world.<ref name=Ambar>{{SM|Ambar}} p. 259</ref> The Straits of the World appears only in early writings<ref name=Ambar>{{SM|Ambar}} p. 259</ref> before Tolkien envisioned the wide lands of [[Eriador]], [[Gondor]], and [[Mordor]] that lay east of the Great Gulf. It is also told in ''[[Unfinished Tales]]'' that the migration of the [[Drúedain]] from [[Hildórien]] brought them westward through lands south of Mordor,<ref>{{UT|Druedain}}, pp. 339-340</ref> perhaps a passing reference to the Straits of the World in the First Age. | ||
==Portrayal in adaptations== | ==Portrayal in adaptations== | ||
[[Karen Wynn Fonstad]] speculated in ''[[The Atlas of Middle-earth]]'' that the Sea of Helcar drained into the Great Gulf at the end of the First Age | [[Karen Wynn Fonstad]] speculated in ''[[The Atlas of Middle-earth]]'' that the Sea of Helcar drained into the Great Gulf at the end of the First Age, implying that the river [[Poros]] came to be as a result. Fonstand's interpretation was predicated on the idea that [[Mordor]] was created in the Second Age where the Sea of Helcar once lay: the result of the cataclysmic geographic changes in the aftermath of the end of the First Age.<ref>{{HM|AME}}</ref> However, in ''[[The Peoples of Middle-earth]]'' (which was published after Fontstad's ''Atlas''), [[Melkor]] was said to have created [[Mount Doom]] in Mordor during the "long [[First Age]]".<ref>{{PM|Last}} p. 390 (note 14)</ref> Melkor's volcanic raising of Mount Doom may nonetheless have upsurged and expanded the land of Mordor, consequently birthing Poros out of the emptied Sea of Helcar in what remained of the Straits of the World. | ||
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Revision as of 02:18, 10 April 2020
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The Straits of the World was a strait of mountainous land linking the Great Gulf with the Inland Sea of Helcar in the First Age of the world.[1] The Straits of the World appears only in early writings[1] before Tolkien envisioned the wide lands of Eriador, Gondor, and Mordor that lay east of the Great Gulf. It is also told in Unfinished Tales that the migration of the Drúedain from Hildórien brought them westward through lands south of Mordor,[2] perhaps a passing reference to the Straits of the World in the First Age.
Portrayal in adaptations
Karen Wynn Fonstad speculated in The Atlas of Middle-earth that the Sea of Helcar drained into the Great Gulf at the end of the First Age, implying that the river Poros came to be as a result. Fonstand's interpretation was predicated on the idea that Mordor was created in the Second Age where the Sea of Helcar once lay: the result of the cataclysmic geographic changes in the aftermath of the end of the First Age.[3] However, in The Peoples of Middle-earth (which was published after Fontstad's Atlas), Melkor was said to have created Mount Doom in Mordor during the "long First Age".[4] Melkor's volcanic raising of Mount Doom may nonetheless have upsurged and expanded the land of Mordor, consequently birthing Poros out of the emptied Sea of Helcar in what remained of the Straits of the World.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Shaping of Middle-earth, "V. The Ambarkanta" p. 259
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Unfinished Tales, "The Drúedain", pp. 339-340
- ↑ Karen Wynn Fonstad (1991), The Atlas of Middle-earth
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Peoples of Middle-earth, "XIII. Last Writings" p. 390 (note 14)
