WARNING: The following contains speculation about The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, premiering Sept. 2 on Prime Video.
Amazon Studios announced its Lord of the Rings series in 2017, but fans knew next to nothing about The Rings of Power until the past few weeks. Now, after a flurry of releases, fans have a pretty good idea of what The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power will look like. Deemed the “novel Tolkien never wrote,” the series synopsis confirmed it will feature the fabled Second Age of Middle-earth, as Sauron constructs the Rings of Power and plots his rise to power, following Morgoth’s defeat in the War of the Powers.
After the synopsis, fans came up with all kinds of theories about which characters would be involved, and what storylines would be addressed. That theorization increased tenfold when Prime Video unveiled a plethora of character posters that strategically didn’t reveal any faces. Then, Vanity Fair published an extensive first look at the coming series. However, all of that paled with the knowledge that Amazon would be releasing its first official footage during the Super Bowl, and it didn’t disappoint.
While the footage didn’t actually reveal a lot, it teased a positive overall tone for the series. With sweeping vistas, dramatic character shots and swelling music, it definitely felt in line with Tolkien’s legendarium. The most compelling part, however, was its opening shot: a gleaming, white city. While its beauty is unquestioned, the teaser did little to identify what city it was. So, it’s worth diving into some details and speculating where it could be.
A first glance might lead fans of Tolkien’s work to suspect the Grey Havens, in the Evlish realm of Lindon. Ciridan was Lord of the Grey Havens, and he remained in that stead until all of the Elves sailed away from Middle-earth at the end of the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Nevertheless, a few facts point to the contrary.
The massive statue that effectively grows out of the water’s edge is almost definitely not an Elvish figure. In fact, the statue is reminiscent of the Gates of Argonath depicted in The Fellowship of the Ring. However, Gondor didn’t exist in the Second Age, so in all likelihood, the city is on the island of Númenor. The series synopsis confirms Númenor will be a major location in The Rings of Power; that makes sense because the legendary Fall of Númenor was one of the key events of the Second Age.
With all of that in mind, the city could be Númenor’s capital, Armenelos, which was also known as the City of the Kings. Its completion at the very beginning of the Second Age, and the coronation of Elros Tar-Minyatur as the island’s first king, marked the beginning of the Númenorean era. However, the noticeable absence of Nimloth, the White Tree, as well as the body of water in the foreground, point to the city not being Armenelos.
Because the Númenóreans were a seafaring people, there were a number of important ports on the island, but two stand out as possibilities: Andúnië in the west and Rómenna in the east. The former was once the largest city in Númenor, and an important place for both Elves and Men. The latter was the largest city near the end of Númenor’s existence. Considering how the series’ condensed timeline works, either is technically possible, but a final detail might give an answer.
The mountain in the background is almost definitely Meneltarma, a sacred peak and the largest (and only large mountain) on Númenor. Rómenna would have been about 70 miles from the sacred mountain, while Andúnië would have been over 200 miles. Given Meneltarma’s relative proximity in the trailer, it seems more likely that the city would be Rómenna. While that’s far from a hard and fast prediction, it would, at least initially, certainly make the most sense.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power premieres Friday, Sept. 2, on Prime Video.