Tosaanne writes that Josef Madlener’s hitherto lost original painting that was the inspiration for Tolkien’s Gandalf has been rediscovered. It will be auctioned by Sotheby’s in London on 12 July 2005. You can check out the item, here.
Dr. Philip W. Errington, Department of Printed Books and Manuscripts, Sotheby’s, wrote the following backgrounder on the item.
In his 1977 biography, Humphrey Carpenter recorded details of Tolkien’s 1911 holiday in Switzerland:
“Before setting off on the return journey to England, Tolkien bought some picture postcards. Among them was a reproduction of a painting by a German artist, J. Madelener [sic]. It is called Der Berggeist, the mountain spirit, and it shows an old man sitting on a rock under a pine tree. He has a white beard and wears a wide-brimmed round hat and a long cloak. He is talking to a white fawn that is nuzzling his upturned hands, and he has a humorous but compassionate expression; there is a glimpse of rocky mountains in the distance. Tolkien preserved this postcard carefully, and long afterwards he wrote on the paper cover in which he kept it: ‘Origin of Gandalf’.”
This painting – hitherto known only from a few copies of the postcard – has attained a legendary status in Tolkien studies. An article, ‘The Origin of Gandalf and Josef Madlener’ by Manfred Zimmerman (Mythlore 34, Winter 1983) provides further research into this ‘lost treasure’ and concludes ‘…as for the original, nobody has the slightest idea as to its whereabouts… …perhaps it is… catching dust in someone’s attic, unhonoured and unrecognized for what it is.’
Zimmerman interviewed the artist’s daughter for his article and discovered that the painting was thought to date from around the mid to late 1920s. When asked about the discrepancy in date Carpenter noted that his statement was ‘based on some notes that [Tolkien] wrote on the envelope which contains his copy of the card’. Carpenter also noted that he received ‘endless inquiries from Tolkien enthusiasts who want to see a copy, and cannot find any trace of it’ and felt he ought to have reproduced the postcard in the biography. It is therefore currently accepted that Tolkien acquired a copy of the postcard in the mid 1920s around the time when he began telling his children the stories that were eventually to become The Hobbit.
The present owner met the artist twice and remembers Madlener as being tall – approximately six foot, or six foot one. Madlener liked to bake and, for a second visit in 1946 or 1947 had made some bread, similar to Stollen, and there was much conversation, bread and coffee. Having seen Der Berggeist on the previous visit, the present owner told the artist how much he loved it. Madlener promptly told his guest to give it a good home. It has remained in this private collection for the last sixty years.
The painting, lot 423, is featured in Sotheby’s 12 July sale of ‘English Literature, History, Children’s Books and Illustrations’ (L05407), estimated at £20,000 – 30,000. Other Tolkien material includes two copies of The Hobbit, presentation copies of The Lord of the Rings, and two letters from Tolkien concerning a production of The Hobbit and the source of the name ‘Bag-End’.
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Sometimes, just sometimes, it’s interesting and fun to play ‘what if?’. That’s why this weekend, we’re asking you ‘What if Gollum had lived?’. At the climax of the Return of the King, Frodo claims the ring for himself, Gollum grabs him and bites off Frodo’s finger. The Precious is his! But as Gollum holds up both ring and finger triumphantly, he slips, dropping both the Ring and Frodo’s finger into the fire. Yet he doesn’t fall in himself. What happens next? [More]
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Sometimes, just sometimes, it’s interesting and fun to play ‘what if?’. That’s why this weekend, we’re asking you ‘What if Gollum had lived?’. At the climax of the Return of the King, Frodo claims the ring for himself, Gollum grabs him and bites off Frodo’s finger. The Precious is his! But as Gollum holds up both ring and finger triumphantly, he slips, dropping both the Ring and Frodo’s finger into the fire. Yet he doesn’t fall in himself. What happens next?
Perhaps Gollum, in despair or desperation, jumps in after the Ring?
Perhaps he dies more or less straight away because the power of the ring which kept him alive for so much longer than normal is gone?
Perhaps, when the Eagles rescue Sam and Frodo, they leave Gollum to the fire?
Or perhaps, the Eagles rescue Gollum along with Sam and Frodo. After spending time in Imladris or maybe in Hobbiton, he is granted passage into the Uttermost West to seek final healing with Frodo.
Which of these do you think is possible? Which is not? And why?
Or perhaps you have another idea of your own!
Regardless, feel free to join us on the TORn IRC server this Sunday, June 26 from 2.00pm EDT in #thehalloffire to share your thoughts!
Time and date:
Sunday June 26
America:
2.00pm EDT
1.00pm CDT
12.00pm MDT
11.00am PDT
Europe:
7:00pm UK
8:00pm Central Europe
Asia-Pacific
4.00am (Monday) Brisbane
4.00am (Monday) Sydney
6.00am (Monday) Wellington
Chats usually last 45 mins to an hour, and are very newbie friendly. Simply drop in and join the conversation!
Where?
Chat happens on #thehalloffire on irc.theonering.net – the TORn IRC server. You can connect instantly via our java chat client that works inside your web browser (find it here! ) or choose to install a dedicated chat program such as mIRC on your computer.
To find out more about using mIRC to connect to TORn IRC server, check out these instructions.
Upcoming topics:
“What if gollum lived?”
– Sunday June 26
– Saturday July 2
“Silmarillion Chapter 10 – Of the Sindar”
– Sunday July 10
– Saturday July 16
Got a topic? Let us know your idea!
If you have a burning desire to discuss something in Hall of Fire, drop us a line with your topic at halloffire@theonering.net. If we like it, we’ll probably give it a run in the coming weeks – you might even get to guest moderate the session!
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Monte was the first to let us know that Hubble scored a glimpse of the Eye of Sauron. Wonderful things like this is why we need to keep the Hubble Space Telescope alive. More]
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FredO wrote to let us know that the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra has now confirmed the rumor that Billy Boyd will be a guest vocalist at their July 22nd and 23rd performances of The Lord of the Rings Symphony. Billy will reprise his role as Pippin and sing “The Edge Of Night” from the Return Of The King as he performs it live for the first time anywhere when he appears with the PSO on July 22nd & 23rd, 2005. He will also be attending, for each performance, the pre-concert Q&A, the post-concert
reception and the Middle Earth dinner. Only Gold Circle tickets, the ones that cost $75.00, get tickets to the post-concert reception. Tickets to the Middle Earth dinner, which is a fund-raiser for the PSO, are $65.00. There is still time to get a last minute flight. [More]
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The Two Towers cracked AFI’s Top 100 Movie Quotes of All Time list that was recently released. Although, I personally think LotR has a couple more lines that might have made it, I cannot argue, these are some dandy quotes. [More]
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