In this short article, Librarian Antony Ramm explores a small but valuable addition to our collection of Tolkien-related materials at Leeds Central Library. This article is part of our series on the current Fantasy: Realms of Imagination exhibition, taking place at the Central Library until January 2024…

As most people probably know, legendary fantasy author J.R.R. Tolkien lived in Leeds for a short period early in his academic career (1920 – 1925). In an earlier article on the Secret Library Leeds we explored those Tolkien-Leeds connections and, in particular, the various ways of tracing that link in the Central Library collections.

Another one of those connections has recently come to light. In his 2012 book There and back again: J.R.R. Tolkien and the origins of The hobbit (recently acquired by Leeds Libraries as part of our 2023 Fantasy exhibition), Mark Atherton describes Tolkien’s inspiration for his illustration of Beorn’s Hall in The Hobbit (1937):

“…the source had been discovered in a similar illustration in An Introduction to Old Norse by his Leeds University friend and colleague E.V. Gordon; appropriately enough the picture illustrates the story of Bothvar Bjarki from Hrolf Kraki’s Saga.”

This – the name E.V. Gordon, the relationship between their work and Tolkien’s own – was unknown to this Librarian at the time of writing the earlier Secret Library Leeds blog in 2017, making Atherton’s account a very intriguing reference, and one that was followed up in our collections.

A search of our Library catalogue revealed we had a copy of Gordon’s An Introduction to Old Norse in our Information and Research department – albeit the 2nd, revised edition from 1957, rather than the original that was published in 1927.

But, on locating our copy of Gordon’s book, we were delighted to find, on page 28, the very illustration Atherton described, and which so very clearly inspired Tolkien’s own drawing (which you can see on this website). Here it is –

We also found, in the book’s preface, an even-more direct connection between Tolkien and Gordon. Gordon writes in his book’s introduction:

“For help in preparing the apparatus of the book I am indebted especially to Professor J.R.R. Tolkien, who read the proofs of the Grammar and made valuable suggestions and corrections.”

These are, of course, only small, perhaps even minor, references and traces to Tolkien. But they are fascinating all the same, and help to illuminate a five-year period that was evidently of great impact on Tolkien and his future writings.

You can see much more about Tolkien, his connections to Leeds, and the wider world of Fantasy in our current exhibition, a partnership with the British Library – Fantasy: Realms of Imagination (at the Central Library until January 17 2024, during opening hours)