

Around a thousand years before Frodo set off to return some bad jewelry, the city of Minas Ithil (translation: Tower of the Moon) was conquered by the Ringwraiths and given the extremely metal name Minas Morgul (Tower of Black Sorcery). In the bottom-center of the map, right next door to Mordor, are familiar locations with unfamiliar names: Gondor’s cities of Minas Ithil and Minas Anor. The second to last map features an explosion of place names, and looks to be a map from earlier in the Third Age, when the kingdoms of Men, Gondor, and Arnor were at the height of their power. But he never found the three Elven rings - one of which Galadriel took with her when she fled Eregion to Laurelindórenan.

He gave nine to Men, who slowly decayed into the undead Ringwraiths.

He gave seven to the dwarves, which intensified their lust for precious metals. (And yes, this means we might get a Hot Sauron.) Long story short, Sauron made the One Ring to control the others, sacked Eregion, and managed to seize most of the Rings. Helping them make those Rings was a gorgeous fellow named Annatar, who turned out to be the Dark Lord Sauron in disguise. Tolkien never settled on a specific timeline for the Lady of Lórien, but Galadriel is usually thought to have settled in Laurelindórenan/Lothlórien in the middle of the Second Age, around the time the Elven-smiths in the land of Eregion made the Rings of Power. This was the ancient name of Lothlórien, the Elven realm where Frodo and Company met Galadriel. We get more names on the third map, and like Calenardhon, the most surprising one is an older name for a very familiar place: Laurelindórenan. Let’s take a look at each one and their most significant details. But for those curious enough to do some digging, the maps reveal the show’s potential narrative aims. For casual fans who may not be familiar with Tolkien’s detailed record of each era, not to mention the heroes and villains who occupied them, the trove of clues about the upcoming show aren’t immediately obvious. The five maps move backward through Middle-earth history, illustrating a long stretch of time that runs from 5,000 to 500 years before Frodo and the Fellowship began their journey in The Lord of the Rings. But the five maps of Middle-earth that Amazon released earlier this month tell a different story - or rather, stories. Early rumors suggested a Young Aragorn show.

Tolkien once said of his fictional world, and now so has Amazon Prime Video, which paid a reported $250 million for the rights to produce a Lord of the Rings TV series. You’re probably not getting an Amazon show.
