There seems to be a lot of JRR Tolkien in the air at the moment. On my recent visit to Oxford I realised what an important literary figure he was in Oxford, where he lived and worked and wrote and of course here in the Creuse there is the magnificent summer exhibition in Aubusson of tapestries of Tolkien’s drawings of his books, the originals of which are stored in the Bodleian Library in Oxford.
The 14 tapestries and 2 rugs of Tolkien’s illustrations has taken Aubusson tapestry weaving and creativiity to another level – they are indeed magnificent works of art of which I feel sure John Ronald Reuel Tolkien would be delighted and amazed by. While in Oxford I visited Tolkien’s grave, which is in Wolvercote cemetry, near to where my son lives, another coincidence. The cemetry is a calm, beautiful place, well visited by Tolkien fans, he is buried next to his beloved wife Edith Mary and not far away is the grave of his son John. The inscription on their gravestones is that of Beren and Luthien, characters from Tolkien’s early stories of Middle Earth.
While in Oxford one can also take a Tolkien walking tour visiting many places where Tolkien lived and where he and his writer friend CS Lewis met up together with their literary group to discuss their work. For example, the Eagle and Child pub where they met weekly, Exeter College in Oxford where Tolkien studied and worked. The Botanic Gardens which inspired his descriptions of Middle Earth, his walks in the University parks where he found peace close to nature, giving him time to reflect on his themes of friendship, courage and adventure which are often in his famous books, The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings.
JRR Tolkien, who is indeed a hero to many, was born in South Africa, the family emigrated to England when he was 4 years old. He studied at Oxford and laterbecame Professor of English Language at Oxford University. He met Edith, the love of his life in Birmingham, he was a soldier during the First World War, spent time at the Somme in the trenches, finally returning to Oxford as a Professor always continuing to develop his mythology and his lingusitic gifts.
The Hobbit was finally published in 1937 and was a big success, The Lord of the Rings was published in 1954/55, becoming something of a cult for so many Tolkien fans. Tolkien and Edith had 4 children, she died in 1971, him 2 years later, both buried near Oxford and together forever in eternity.
