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6 Rivendell From Lord Of The Rings

New Line Cinema

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In J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord Of The Rings novels, Rivendell is the home of the elves, located inside a grand valley where evil dare not venture. We're not sure if evil dare not venture into Switzerland (though Hitler was compellingly reluctant), but that's where Rivendell is:

Chensiyuan/Wikimedia, New Line Cinema

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When he was 19, Tolkien visited the spectacular valley of Lauterbrunnen. Decades later, when he wrote The Hobbit, he described Rivendell, and illustrated it as well. And although he never explicitly identified the Lauterbrunnen Valley as the inspiration for Rivendell, well ... it ain't like this kind of majesty can be found in inner Philly.