Minas Tirith, the Tower of Guard, sits on the eastern tip of the White mountains and is the capital of the (fictional) realm of Gondor. It was once called Minas Anor, The Tower of the Setting Sun, in connection with Minas Ithil, The Tower of the Rising Moon. However, Minas Ithil lay in a narrow valley in the Shadow Mountains (AKA Ephel Dúath). It was soon overrun by orcs and renamed Minas Morgul, The Tower of Black Sorcery. After the fall of Minas Ithil, Minas Anor was renamed to Minas Tirith and has since slept uneasily within sight of the land of Mordor.
It’s steeped in the culture of the Men of Westernesse and rich in the lore of mankind. It was seen as the bastion that stood in defiance to the might of Mordor and as a result was attacked and nearly destroyed near the end of the Third Age. It houses the throne for the heirs of Isildur, one that is claimed by Aragorn, son of Arathorn, at the beginning of the Fourth Age, reuniting the lands of Gondor and Arnor in the process. As you can tell, I’m a massive Lord of the Rings dork, in fact anything from Middle-Earth gets my feathers all ruffled up. I’ve worshipped the books J.R.R Tolkien left behind as his legacy and one thing that always stood out for me was the White City.
And it looks like I wasn’t the only one fascinated by the capital of Gondor. A while ago a group of architects and engineers banded together to realise their dream of bringing the city of Minas Tirith out of the dusty tomes of Tolkien and into our tangible reality. The only thing in their way? Money. 18 days ago they set up an Indiegogo page to help crowdfund the cash needed to realise such an ambition. The amount they’re aiming for? £1,850,000,000 / $2.8 billion / AED 10.2 billion. Yeah, that’s a lot of dough. Here’s the slightly crazy part, they only have 60 days since the inception of the crowdfund to raise the amount. It’s been 18 days since and they’ve raised less than 1%. Perhaps the word “ambitious” is stretching it?
Now before you think that this is just a ludicrous way to rip people off, the group of architects and engineers actually have a plan for how to put the funds to good use: “In order to realise this amazing dream, we have calculated our required budget to be in the region of £1.85bn. The vast majority of this expense will cover building costs – £15m for land, £188m for labour and £1.4bn for material. The remainder of the money will be invested in maintenance and public services until the year 2053. We aim to commence work on Minas Tirith by the end of 2016, and complete the project by the end of 2023. We are currently considering two locations for Minas Tirith, both in southern England.”
The benefits for those who contribute towards “Realise Minas Tirith”, as it’s titled, are some of the best I’ve seen when it comes to crowdsourced projects. Donating £15 will get your name etched on a stone monument, standing as an eternal testimony of your donation. If you have a heavy wallet, £100,000 will grant you and your family exclusive access to all areas of the city, permits use of horse drawn carriages for transport and give you priority on property purchases, in addition to giving you the title of Lord/Lady of the City.
Should the remaining amount be raised before the campaign expires, construction will begin by the end of 2016 and the city will be finished by 2023. You can go to the Indiegogo page here to pledge some money.
“For the fashion of Minas Tirith was such that it was built on seven levels, each delved into the hill, and about each was set a wall, and in each was a gate. But the gates were not set in a line: the Great Gate in the City wall was at the east point of the circuit, but the next faced half south, and the third half north, and so to and fro upwards; so the paved way that climbed toward the citadel turned this way and that and then that across the face of the hill.” – The Return of the King, Chapter 1: Minas Tirith.
Do you think they can raise the remaining funds before the campaign expires? Would you like to see a real life Minas Tirith? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
