Lauterbrunnen Valley in the Swiss Alps
© Leonid Andronov/Getty Image
Tolkien’s Rivendell inspiration. Lauterbrunnen Valley in the Swiss Alps
For Tolkien Reading Day, we’re visiting the Lauterbrunnen Valley in the Swiss Alps, which is believed to have inspired the Elven sanctuary of Rivendell in J.R.R. Tolkien’s novels ‘The Lord of the Rings’ and ‘The Hobbit.’ Like Tolkien's mythical Elf settlement, Lauterbrunnen Valley has a bit of storybook appeal, with an unusually narrow valley floor hemmed in by steep Alpine cliffs and dotted with numerous waterfalls. The valley remains a popular tourist destination.
The Tolkien Society organised the first Tolkien Reading Day in 2003 to celebrate and promote his works. They selected March 25 as it is the day that the Dark Lord Sauron was defeated, and the Black Tower was destroyed in 'The Lord of the Rings.' Tolkien’s writing continues to provide fodder to various entertainment forms, with Amazon’s ‘Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power’ debuting in 2022.
Related Images
Mua Caves in the Ninh Bình province of Vietnam
Firefall at Horsetail Fall, Yosemite National Park, California
Abu Simbel temples on the west shore of Lake Nasser, Egypt
Bath, Somerset, England
View of Orchha, Madhya Pradesh
A walkway through a mountain peak in Chamonix, France
Wildflowers in bloom at Lost Dutchman State Park in Arizona, USA
The village of Aguerd Oudad and the larger town of Tafraout in Morocco
Bing Today Images
