Just like Middle-earth, the J.R.R. Tolkien empire is spread far and wide. It goes beyond the mainstream editions of The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and his other Middle-earth books. We’ve combed through thousands of listings on AbeBooks to identify 10 great examples of Tolkienabilia from unique editions to posters and maps.
Several of these items are unique and may sell quickly.
Dario Ustino and Jeanne Biagi run a bookbinding firm called Charta in Venice, Italy. They are skilled bookbinders who find old books and rebind them in artistic ways to create unique and beautiful literary objects. Naturally, books written by J.R.R. Tolkien are part of their work.
The Hobbit has been widely translated and can be found in numerous languages. In 1962, the creator of the Moomins, Tove Jansson, illustrated the Swedish edition of The Hobbit, which was published as Bilbo: En Hobbits Äventyr. Tolkien and Jansson is a match made in heaven. Surely, there is room for Moomins in Middle-earth.
After Ace Books had published an unauthorised paperback edition, Ballantine rushed to bring a new edition to market in 1965. Artist and illustrator Barbara Remington was tasked with producing this concept art even though she hadn't read the books.
SOLD - This signed and dated painting of Gandalf wielding his goblin-killing sword, Glamdring, was created in the Catskills in 1990 by the artist Tom Son. The painting is on slate and weighs more than 30 pounds.
There are several Tolkien calendars but the 1974 Allen & Unwin edition is utterly old school. The front cover shows J.R.R. Tolkien relaxing on the grass, leaning against a tree, while wearing a tweed jacket. It can't get more English than this.
Narnia illustrator Pauline Baynes designed this map and the original is now housed in Oxford’s Bodleian Library. This poster map is now a scarce piece of Tolkien ephemera. In the map, Middle-earth is fashioned after the Welsh mountains that inspired Tolkien.
There are various posters associated with Tolkien but we recommend HarperCollins’ 1999 poster collection featuring six paintings by Alan Lee.
Here are a couple of items for your "my precious" collection: a three-feet tall lobby card of Gollum used to promote The Two Towers film, and a book about how Gollum was created for the Peter Jackson movies.
A fantasy game character compendium from 1986 which came in three volumes.
Middle-earth colouring books are as common as orcs in Mordor. We recommend A Bestiary of Tolkien Coloring because it's always fun to "Smaugment" a dragon with colour.
