Yet more opportunities to win with TheOneRing.net! This time, it’s our good friends at Harper Collins who are giving away TEN copies of the newly published The Story of Kullervo– Tolkien’s first piece of prose fiction.
According to Harper Collins’ official press release, The Story of Kullervois ‘a previously unknown work of fantasy by J.R.R. Tolkien, which tells the powerful story of a doomed young man who is sold into slavery and who swears revenge on the magician who killed his father. This is its first appearance in book form; 2015 is the centenary of its creation.’
This beautiful new publication is illustrated on the cover with one of Tolkien’s own paintings. The press release goes on to say:
‘Kullervo son of Kalervo is perhaps the darkest and most tragic of all J.R.R Tolkien’s characters. ‘Hapless Kullervo,’ as Tolkien called him, is a luckless orphan boy with supernatural powers and a tragic destiny.
Brought up in the homestead of the dark magician Untamo, who killed his father, kidnapped his mother, and who tries three times to kill him when still a boy, Kullervo is alone save for the love of his twin sister, Wanona, and guarded by the magical powers of the black dog, Musti. When Kullervo is sold into slavery he swears revenge on the magician, but he will learn that even at the point of vengeance there is no escape from the cruellest of fates.
Tolkien himself said that The Story of Kullervo was ‘the germ of my attempt to write legends of my own’, and was ‘a major matter in the legends of the First Age’. Tolkien’s Kullervo is the clear ancestor of Túrin Turambar, tragic incestuous hero of The Silmarillion. In addition to it being a powerful story in its own right, The Story of Kullervo – published here for the first time with the author’s drafts, notes and lecture-essays on its source-work, The Kalevala – is a foundation stone in the structure of Tolkien’s invented world.’
We have ten copies of this book to give away to ten lucky readers – and the competition is open worldwide! To enter, all you need to do is complete the form below, including answering the following simple question:
How many years is it since Tolkien first created The Story of Kullervo?
Simply write the answer in the ‘special note’ box. Please also NOTE YOUR SHIPPING ADDRESS in the ‘special note’ box. Complete the rest of the form and hit ‘enter now’! The competition is open until Thursday 10th September. Good luck!
For the next three months we’re teaming up with our friends at BudK.Com to give away one of the many great Middle-earth weapons featured throughout The Lord of the Rings Trilogy and The Hobbit Trilogy. We start off our contest with a sword fit for a King and my personal favorite of all the weapons used in Middle-earth. That’s right! We’re giving away Anduril. Entering is simple all you have to do is fill out the contest page and you’re entered. This contest is for U.S. Residents only.
It’s no secret that the artists of Weta Workshop who brought both Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit to life are an insanely talented bunch, but have you ever wondered what they’ve been up to post Middle-earth? Aside from contributing to multiple other films and their own projects, several have been collaborating on a wonderful series of books showcasing their Fantasy and Science Fiction art: White Cloud Worlds. New Zealand’s Maori name is Aotearoa, which means “the land of the long white cloud,” and given that the art is all Kiwi-made, well, you get the picture! Several of the art pieces included were also inspired by Middle-earth.
The covers of Volumes 1 & 2
Books one and two have already been released, and book three is due out in November. This new volume is said to contain over 200 images, showcasing the work of 60 New Zealand artists, several of whom include such Middle-earth artists as:
Gus Hunter, Weta Workshop Designer, LOTR & The Hobbit
Ben Wootten, Weta Workshop Designer, LOTR
Paul Tobin, Weta Workshop Designer, The Hobbit
Jamie Beswarick, Weta Workshop Designer, LOTR & The Hobbit
Andrew Baker, Weta Workshop Designer, The Hobbit
Lindsey Crummett, Weta Workshop Designer, The Hobbit
One of my favorite creatures in all of Middle-earth is the Balrog. When this guy first popped on-screen in The Lord of the Rings; The Fellowship of the Ring, my jaw dropped with just how cool he looked, and last year at Comic-Con the same thing happened when I saw this amazing piece. Part of the reborn The Lord of the Rings statue line, this time fans get a large version of this mind blowing creature. Coming in at 20.5″ high, with a weight of 33 pounds the Balrog is going to be a piece that will make everyone who sees your collection stop and look at it in awe. Shipping right now from all warehouses, the Balrog can be yours for $649 with an edition size of only 1500 pieces worldwide. Continue reading “Collecting The Precious – Weta Workshop’s The Balrog: The Demon of Shadow and Flame”
Today, is the last of the three week run of Weta Workshop post Comic-Con extravaganza collectibles.We end this run with a very cool rider piece capturing Dain Ironfoot himself on that really awesome War Boar. Dain, who hopefully we get to see a bit more of in the extended edition because what we did get to see of him in the theatrical release was pretty cool, is presented in incredible detail. One of the other things I really liked about Dain, besides the incredible detail and likeness, was the metallic paint used on the armor. Fans can order Dain right now for a solid price of $449 with a pretty low edition size of just 800 pieces worldwide. You can expect Dain to arrive into your collection during the first quarter of 2016.
As we’ve mentioned before, Asmus Toys is doing 1:6 figures from both The Lord of the Rings as well as The Hobbit. Our friends at Sideshow Collectibles are helping fans get both Aragorn and Tauriel by distributing them to collectors. Both figures come with loads of items allowing you to create whatever poses you want. Plus, if you order Aragorn you get a special base with an Amon Hen theme. You can snag Aragorn for $199, and he is due to ship between September and December of this year. Tauriel will be shipping to collectors a little sooner, with a shipping scheduled for September or October of this year.
Yet more opportunities to win with TheOneRing.net! This time, it’s our good friends at Harper Collins who are giving away TEN copies of the newly published The Story of Kullervo – Tolkien’s first piece of prose fiction.
