The atlas has been warmly received by Tolkien scholars, who have called it both authorized and magisterial, providing in particular a comprehensive set of thematic maps of Middle-earth.
The Atlas of Middle-earth was first published in hardback by Houghton Mifflin in the United States in 1981. A revised and updated second edition was published in 1991, after Christopher Tolkien had edited and published eight volumes of The History of Middle-earth following his father's death. HarperCollins republished the revised edition in London in 1994, reprinting it in 1999, 2016, and 2017.[6]
Approach
Fonstad compares Gondor's Emyn Muil to the Weald of Kent (pictured), as it has a pair of inward-facing downs.[2]
The Atlas of Middle-earth provides many detailed maps of the lands described in Tolkien's books. The maps are treated as if they are of real landscapes, drawn according to the rules of a real atlas. For each area the history of the land is taken into account, as well as geography on a larger scale; from there maps are drawn.[7] Fonstad's discussion includes suggestions as to the geology that could explain various formations, and points that are contradictory between multiple accounts. Fonstad explains in the atlas, and in her article about it, how she came to decide on such matters. For example, she compares the western Emyn Muil with its two ridges to the Weald with its pair of inward-facing downs (an anticline).[2]
City maps and floor plans for important buildings are included. For example, the city of Minas Tirith is mapped on a single page, the main map giving a perspective view of the whole city, while three insets show the nearly-circular plan of the city, a plan of the citadel in the innermost circle, and a labelled cutaway drawing of the White Tower at the centre of the citadel. A page of text describes the city's geography.[8] Further maps are given of significant events, such as the Battle of the Pelennor Fields in front of Minas Tirith.[9]
Fonstad created "the most comprehensive set" of thematic maps of Middle-earth, such as Frodo and Sam's route to Mount Doom to destroy the One Ring.[7]
The Tolkien scholar Verlyn Flieger records that she persuaded Fonstad to write an account for Tolkien Studies of how she researched and created the maps for her Atlas of Middle-earth. Fonstad, while seriously ill, accordingly prepared her last article, "Writing 'TO' the Map" in her final months. Flieger stated "We mourn her passing and we honor her work".[2] The editor of Tolkien Studies, David Bratman, notes that the atlas provides historical, geological, and battle maps, with a detailed commentary and explanation of how Fonstad approached the mapping task from the available evidence.[14] Michael Brisbois, also in Tolkien Studies, describes the atlas as "authorized",[15] while the cartographers Ina Habermann and Nikolaus Kuhn take Fonstad's maps as defining Middle-earth's geography.[16] The Tolkien scholar Luke Shelton calls the book the more popular of the two atlases of Middle-earth, the other being Barbara Strachey's more specific Journeys of Frodo. In his view, the book isn't perfect "but it is certainly helpful", not least as it covers the First and Second Ages.[17]
Stentor Danielson, a Tolkien scholar, notes that Tolkien did not provide the same "detailed textual history" to contextualise his maps as he did for his writings. Danielson suggests that this has assisted the tendency among Tolkien's fans to treat his maps as "geographical fact".[7] He calls Fonstad's atlas "magisterial",[7] and comments that like Tolkien, Fonstad worked from the assumption that the maps, like the texts, "are objective facts" which the cartographer must fully reconcile. He gives as an instance the work that she did to make the journey of Thorin's company in The Hobbit consistent with the map, something that Tolkien found himself unable to do. Danielson writes that in addition, Fonstad created "the most comprehensive set" of thematic maps of Middle-earth, presenting geographic data including political boundaries, climate, population density, and the routes of characters or armies.[7]
^Brisbois, Michael J. (2005). "Tolkien's Imaginary Nature: An Analysis of the Structure of Middle-earth". Tolkien Studies. 2 (1). Project Muse: 197–216. doi:10.1353/tks.2005.0009. ISSN1547-3163. S2CID170238657.
^Habermann, Ina; Kuhn, Nikolaus (2011). "Sustainable Fictions – Geographical, Literary and Cultural Intersections in J. R. R. Tolkien'sThe Lord of the Rings". The Cartographic Journal. 48 (4): 263–273. doi:10.1179/1743277411y.0000000024. ISSN0008-7041. S2CID140630128.
