POSTER STOP ONLINE The Hobbit/The Lord of the Rings - Movie Poster/Print (Map of Middle Earth - Limited Dark/Sepia Edition) (Size 36" x 24") (Unframed)

Nice size, good quality, good color, great value

I am a Tolkien fanfic writer, so it's no surprise that a map of Middle Earth over my writing desk is something of a must. There aren't a lot of choices probably thanks to copyright issues, and this is the undisputed best of what's out there in this price category. The palette is sepias, with a black border and red place names. The map is accurate; the same stuff as is found after the Appendices to the Return of the King...and therein lies the first potential problem. That map is not detailed, so this map isn't detailed. If all the information on mountains/rivers/places is what you need, you want to have Karen Wynn Fonstad's "Atlas of Middle Earth" on the next shelf. If not having all the Sindarin place names is fine by you, and you don't also need to know (for example) that the Grey Havens are called Mithlond in Elvish, the map is great. My next two criticisms are incredibly picky, and most purchasers won't care a whit. Peter Jackson started a convention of showing text being written in his films -- every time the letter "a" is inscribed, three dots are placed over the vowel in an isosceles triangle pattern. This is needless, and silly. In Elvish, those three little dots are used in some of the writing systems to actually mean...the letter "a". So in my head I see things like Aarnor and Enedwaaith, etc. (I warned you, serious nerd. Anyway.) For the last bit, I have a mea culpa. I was originally going to complain that the Elvish text bordering the poster seemed to be gibberish, and yet something caused me to look more carefully and ask someone who is a full on Tolkien linguistic scholar. He informed me that it is not gibberish, though it contains some writing mistakes. It is in the Tengwar Mode of quanta sarmë, specifically the 'Later/Westron Convention (Northern Variety)' of the poem sung by Sam Gamgee in the Tower of Cirith Ungol titled "In Western Lands." So for going to this level of effort, I'm changing my four star review to five. I have been taken to school, and now I will appreciate this poster even more than I did before!

Dang accurate map of Middle Earth. Arrived in perfect condition. Hung it in a frame, all the ladies go wild *spit take*

The poster is high quality and looks great on the wall. Highly recommend

Nice poster. Would look more expensive with a matte finish.

It’s hard to find quality prints of anything Tolkien. This map (the 24 X 36 size) has clear print and the sepia tones look great with the blue frame. It took me quite a while to take the plastic off since the room I bought it for was not ready to be decorated and when I did I saw a corner of the plexiglass was cracked. The seller sent a replacement immediately even though it was a bit after the return window and I really appreciate that because it would have been a pain to try to track down a new plexi glass panel. :) Thanks!

ORDERED = 08/11/2016 || SELLER = Poster Stop || PAID = $8.97(Beware of Seller changes! That's when you may get burned!):: PROS ::1.) Fan must buy...it's simply 'the' best version of the map I have seen this side of LotRo!2.) It looks SPOT-ON - the writing is fairly clear on mine. (Little fuzzy on the fonts, but hey it's ten bucks!)3.) The outer border really blends nicely into a dark brown frame in my opinion ;)4.) Of ALL the posters I have ever bought in my life, this ONE is 'the' best yet! (PAPER POSTER - I have had amazing cloth maps!)5.) Framed it is really honestly "Poster Art" in a way :):: CONS ::1.) Fonts are meant to look like a "Ink & Quill" was used, this could look BLURRY to some.2.) Sepia tones can distort the "Blackness" of Fonts, it's normal, but can appear like faded ink!FOR THE MONEY IT'S FINE - Sure a better parchment print with gold-inlay would be sweet, but I couldn't afford that anyhow ;)

What I liked? Doesn't say Lord of the Rings or The Hobbit. Shows the majority of the interesting points in ME, but cuts off a lot of the extra area in the east - which is blank anyway. The color is great. The printing is high quality. It does have a 'sheen' so it will reflect light.What not to like? There is a bit cut off on the bottom, though it is mostly unimportant area (you lose a bit of the southern edge of Mordor and a bit of the mouth of the Anduin...). Also, the poster is super thin so I had to press and tape the poster in the frame despite having a thick cardboard insert as well as the firmly pressed backing. If you don't, then the poster has little ripples and wrinkles that reflect light annoyingly. But for the price I can't complain!