Minas Tirith
“For partly in the primeval shaping of the hill, partly by the mighty craft and labour of old, there stood up from the rear of the wide court behind the Gate of the towering bastion of stone, its edge sharp as a ship-keel facing east.” (“Minas Tirith”, Book V, The Return of the King)
The architecture of Minas Tirith reflects heavily on the past of both the city and the kingdom. Minas Tirith was built as the capital of the southern kingdom of Gondor by the Elendili, who fled Númenor. To get from Númenor to Gondor, the Elendili had to turn their own ship-keels to face east. This is reflected in the description of Minas Tirith, with its “ship-keel facing east.” Minas Tirith is constantly reminded of those who built it and how they came there. They are also remembered by merely walking down the street. In “Minas Tirith,” Book V, it is said that “in every street they passed some great house or court…of great men and kindreds that had once dwelt there…” And so in every way, the architecture of Minas Tirith reflects those who built it, reminding those who live there of its grand history.
The White Cities
Minas Tirith is known as the White City, and Osgiliath is also built partially of white marble. Minas Tirith literally means “Tower of the Guard,” and guard duty is tiring. The ash that rises out of Mordor has obviously left an effect on the city – its marble is described as “grey weathered stone.” Osgiliath would have used marble from the same quarry as its sister city, Minas Tirith, being only fifteen miles north of it. So in a way, they are both “white cities.” This is again a reflection of those who built them. The Númenóreans who built it were those who fled from Númenor because they were faithful to the Valar and did not worship Morgoth. In other words, they were pure. In most cultures, white is the symbol for purity, something which the builders of both cities were.
Unbreakable Stone, Unbreakable Wizard
“Wood and water, stock and stone, I can master; but there is a wizard to manage here.” (“Flotsam and Jetsam,” Book III, The Two Towers)
The Tower of Orthanc (also called Isengard) was built by the Númenóreans at the end of the Second Age. Saruman obtained the keys during the rule of the Stewards of Gondor, and from there he waited and brooded, at last sending an army out to attack Rohan. However, the Ents of Fangorn Forest got their revenge upon him, and destroyed the orc fields of Isengard, as well as the dam which had been built to hold back the river Isen that flowed through the valley. However, the one thing the Ents could not break was the tower itself. After the attack by the Ents, the valley is thus described by Tolkien: “…the doors lay hurled and twisted on the ground. And all about, stone, cracked and splintered into countless jagged shards, was scattered far and wide, or piled in ruinous heaps. The great arch still stood, but it opened now upon a roofless chasm: the tunnel was laid bare, and through the cliff-like walls on either side great rents and breaches had been torn: their towers were beaten into dust.” (“The Road to Isengard,” Book III, The Two Towers). The Tower of Orthanc was, by contrast, “still dark and tall, unbroken by the storm.” We can see the destruction the Ents wrought to Isengard, and yet the tower of Orthanc still standing. It is implied throughout that the Ents tried to break Saruman, but did not succeed – which is why, perhaps, Treebeard was so relieved to see Gandalf. In the chapter “The Voice of Saruman,” Gandalf works to break Saruman, but they still cannot draw anything out of him. Even when Gandalf breaks his staff, Saruman refuses to give him any information, withdrawing instead to his chambers. In the end of The Return of the King, Saruman is defeated by the Hobbits and is forced to withdraw his influence from the Shire. However, he maintains his pride and would have left to go stir up trouble elsewhere if the Hobbits had resisted killing him. In this way, the building symbolizes the owner – hard and unbreakable.
In Mockery of Light
“But the strength of Gondor failed, and men slept, and for long years the towers stood empty. Then Sauron returned. Now the watch-towers, which had fallen into decay, were repaired, and filled with arms, and garrisoned with ceaseless vigilance.” (“The Black Gate Is Closed,” Book IV, The Two Towers).
All of the towers in Mordor were built by the Gondorians to protect against the coming of Sauron if he ever reappeared. However, Gondor slowly withdrew and shrank, just as Sauron was pushing outwards and growing. And so the orcs of Sauron took over all the Gondorian buildings there. As stated in the above quote, the watch-towers fell into decay, and the orcs took over, repairing them in their own twisted fashion. This is a reflection of the origin of the orcs. They were once Elves, but Melkor (also known as Morgoth) twisted them into hideous creatures that hated the light and cursed it. In Mordor, both the buildings and creatures inhabiting that land have become acts of mockery against the Elves and the Gondorians.
Shelter From the Outside
“In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it or sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort.” (“An Unexpected Party,” The Hobbit).
As we all know, a hobbit hole is the epitome of comfort, and it does a nice job of protecting those who live inside. We also know that the Big People – Men, Elves, and Dwarves – rarely entered the Shire, and if they did, they caused uproar and scandal. Hobbit holes offered their owners exactly what they were looking for – and perhaps in more than one way. Hobbits really have no desire to travel outside the Shire, for they would really like to be left alone by the outside world in peace. And so, once they found the Shire, they dug into the hills and stayed there, hiding from the world and their more obnoxious neighbors. The building of hobbit holes represents the Hobbits’ want of comfort and shelter, and since the ways of Hobbits have never really changed, they feel they don’t need to venture out of their holes and explore new building methods, like those of Elves or Men.
by Alya
Artwork: 1, 2, 3. Alan Lee; 4. Hildebrant.; 5. Roger Garland
