As mentioned in the Shire Reckoning notes on "Reckoning with moon phases", it is demonstrated in The Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion that Tolkien used the actual moon phases of 1941-1942 as a reference when describing the moon (or lack of moon) during certain events in The Lord of the Rings, but these moon phases only align with the dates in the narrative if those Shire Calendar dates start reckoning their year from December 25 in 1940 and 1941. Also mentioned in those notes is the concept that moon phases repeat on approximately the same dates every 19 years, and these 1941-2 moon phases repeated on most of the same dates in 2017-18 (with some falling 1 day earlier).
So starting in the spring of 2017 (or really the previous fall) I led myself and my brother in a "Lunar Readalong", re-reading LOTR in "real-time" in 2017-18, according to the moon phases and approximately at the same time-of-year as described in the story, with the help of The Lord of the Rings Appendix B, the Reader's Companion, and this project's Middle-earth calendar simulations.
I also posted my progress to the /r/tolkienfans subreddit, and along the way I made some notes on some of my real-world observations of the moon on those dates. I have collected my results here, along with the alignment for 2020-21 dates and moon phases.
A shortcut to the calendar simulations that defaults to syncing with the moon phases for 2017-18 and today's date is still available, as well as a shortcut to the simulations that sync with the moon phases for 2020-21 (both are also accessible from the examples page).
I'm now in the process of repeating this Readalong for the 2020-21 moon phases (which I think fit the story even better than the 2017-18 moon phases), so expect some of the scheme and my notes to be updated throughout.
I'm also publishing blog posts on some of the key dates when the moon is mentioned in the story, with Stellarium simulations of exactly what the moon should have looked like (using the moon phases of 1941-42).
This is similar to what has already been done at Shire-Reckoning.com's Moon Phases in The Lord of the Rings, but my blog posts will include fuller quotes from The Lord of the Rings, and are hopefully better illustrated by the Stellarium simulations (not to mention my posts will be published on the corresponding real-world dates of the Readalong).
So please follow along at The Shire Reckoning Project's Lunar Read-along blog, where you can also subscribe to be notified of every new post!
If anyone else wishes to attempt this Readalong in the future, a close approximation can probably be achieved in any year by aligning the full moon nearest to the beginning of March with Rethe 8 (the moon phase that is probably more important to the story than any other moon phase described). Although our friends in the Southern Hemisphere may wish to align the full moon nearest to the end of August with Rethe 8.
This project's Middle-earth calendar simulations can help align the Shire dates with the dates in our calendar in that year. See the directions on how to use the Middle-earth calendar simulations, and also the Moon phases "Synchronize settings", for more details and directions on how to align Shire dates for a different year.
This is not recommended for first-time readers, and needless to say this page will contain book spoilers.
Even though I found it interesting to re-read the story in chronological order, while observing the real-world moon along with the descriptions of it in the story, those who have already read The Lord of the Rings before might not want to read to such a sparse schedule, or rearranged from its original, "overlapping" order the way Tolkien meant it to be read.
At the beginning of the Reader's Companion Book Three, Chapter 1, Hammond and Scull quote Richard C. West, who, "in 'The Interlace Structure of The Lord of the Rings', A Tolkien Compass (1975), points out that this overlapping or 'interlacing' was a medieval form of storytelling":
Interlace... seeks to mirror the perception of the flux of events in the world around us, where everything is happening at once... Also, the narrator implies there are innumerable events that he has not had time to tell us about... Yet the apparently casual form of the interlace is deceptive: it actually has a very subtle kind of cohesion. No part of the narrative can be removed without damage to the whole...
Which I think emphasizes again that attempting to read The Lord of the Rings in chronological order is not recommended for first-time readers.
With that said, perhaps this Readalong chart could still help those who are re-reading The Lord of the Rings in its original order, and want to cross-reference previous chapters of the story to see what else was happening at the same time as the passage they are currently reading.
Perhaps this project can also spark some curiosity in amateur astronomy for those who might not usually pay attention to the real-world moon. Then they can use this scheme to observe the real-world moon themselves, during a similar time of year as in the story, and they can see just how the moon would have looked to the story's characters, or when it would have risen or set over certain events (give or take an hour). As noted above, they would have to align the full moon nearest to the beginning of March with Rethe 8, and use this project's Middle-earth calendar simulations to align all the other Shire dates with the dates in our calendar in that year.
I'm including an emoji for the appropriate moon phase for certain dates in the first column of this table. If the event for that day includes any mention of the moon on that date, then I'll include the appropriate moon phase emoji in the first column of that event's row. If the date is on one of the moon's quarter phases (new 🌑 / 1st 🌓 / full 🌕 / last 🌗), or maybe if the event for that day does not mention the moon but mentions the night sky, then I'll include the appropriate moon phase emoji in parentheses in this column.
| Emoji | Moon phase description |
|---|---|
| 🌑 | new moon |
| 🌒 | waxing crescent |
| 🌓 | 1st quarter |
| 🌔 | waxing gibbous |
| 🌕 | full moon |
| 🌖 | waning gibbous |
| 🌗 | last quarter |
| 🌘 | waning crescent |
The 2nd column includes an appropriate emoji for the month of that event's Shire Calendar date. This emoji is also a direct link to that event in this scheme.
The 3rd column gives the date of the event according to Shire Reckoning, and each Shire month is given in its "original" name in order to avoid confusion with the Gregorian calendar month names for the dates given in the 2020-21 Alignment column.
A specific date is not always given for some events,
so those dates will be marked with (approximate) to indicate that the event occurred near that date.
Often a character will recount past events to the other characters of the story.
I've listed many of those events here on the date the event originally took place on,
and not on the date that character is recalling the event.
So dates marked with (retrospect) indicate that date is the original date of that event.
The scheme includes an example alignment for dates and moon phases in 2020-21.
As mentioned above, a close approximation of aligning the moon phases in a different year can probably be achieved by aligning the full moon nearest to the beginning of March with Rethe 8 (the moon phase that is probably more important to the story than any other moon phase described). Although our friends in the Southern Hemisphere may wish to align the full moon nearest to the end of August with Rethe 8.
See the directions on how to use the Middle-earth calendar simulations, and also the Moon phases "Synchronize settings", for more details and directions on how to align Shire dates for a different year.
I'm including real-world 2019 dates for Chapter 1 that should be close to the same time of year and to what the moon phase should be in that part of the story. The real-world 2019 dates also let 6 months stand-in for the 17-year gap of the story.
I'm using Book and Chapter notation where "Book 1, Chapter 1" is I.1, and "Book 6, Chapter 9" is VI.9.
Page numbers are as given in the Reader's Companion,
which are either for the 2005 single volume,
or for the previous standard 3-volume hardback editions (such as the 1965 publication).
The Reader's Companion 3-volume page numbers are given as Volume:Page,
so the end of the story is listed as 1031 (III:311),
which is page 1031 in the single-volume edition, or Volume III page 311 of the 3-volume edition.
Hopefully using Roman numerals also for the Book.Chapter notation isn't too confusing.
Since not everyone can use these page numbers, a snippet of the passage where I think the story ends on each date is also listed.
Since Shire dates are reckoned from midnight to midnight (just like our modern dates), I've put each cutoff as close to midnight as possible. I'll leave it to the discretion of the reader to decide when to read pre-dawn events past the midnight cutoffs, since some events span an entire night (for example the snowstorm on Caradhras is mostly in the pre-dawn hours of Afteryule 12).
For anyone who is curious, the amount to read on the day of the Battle of the Pelennor Fields, Rethe 15, was second only to the reading on Rethe 5, the day of the parley with Saruman in Orthanc and when Pippin looks into palantír. Using the 1965 edition as reference, it was about 50 vs. 60 pages (or more if you read past the midnight cutoffs until the story gets to morning, as I've tended to do).
Since the readings on these dates were mostly action and dialog, I thought they were fairly quick readings anyway.
A summary of the events for each date is provided, and is usually just quoted from The Tale of Years (Appendix B). If no summary is provided for that date in Appendix B, then I try to use a quote from the story, otherwise I'll provide my own summary.
As mentioned above, I made some notes as I read along with the 2017-18 scheme on some of my real-world observations of the moon for some dates. Those notes are provided in the last column of the scheme below, along with various other notes for certain events.
| Shire date | 2020-21 Alignment | Book.Chapter | Page Start | Read until | Event Summary | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 🍇 | 1401 Halimath 16 (approximate) |
2019 September 12 | I.1 | 21 (I:29) [start of chapter] | Before long the invitations began pouring out... | Preparations for Bilbo's 111th Birthday Party. | The 16th is the end of the 2nd full week of Halimath. The 2019 dates were only chosen to closely match the moon of S.R. 1401 Halimath 22, and to let 6 months stand-in for the 17-year gap of the story. | |
| 🍇 | 1401 Halimath 21 | 2019 September 16 | 26 (I:34) | Thursday, September the 22nd... | Eve of Bilbo's 111th Birthday Party. | |||
| (🌖) | 🍇 | 1401 Halimath 22 | 2019 September 17 | Night passed slowly. The sun rose. | Bilbo's 111th Birthday Party. | The moon on Bilbo Baggins' 111th Birthday Party is not mentioned in the story, but note that Bilbo's 130th birthday, which is also listed in The Tale of Years (Appendix B), is 19 years later and so would fall on approximately the same moon phase. | ||
| 🍇 | 1401 Halimath 23 | 2019 September 18 | I.1 - 2 | 37 (I:45) | 43 (I:52) "There were rumors of strange things" | Summary of the days and the 17 years following Bilbo's Party. | ||
| (🌔) | 🌱 | 1418 Astron 12 | 2020 April 2 | I.2 | 43 (I:52) | Next morning... | "Gandalf reaches Hobbiton" in the early evening. | The moon of this evening was not described in Chapter 2, but it was still nice knowing what the Moon over Hobbiton should have looked like as Sam walked home from The Green Dragon, and when Gandalf knocked on Frodo's study window |
| 🌱 | 1418 Astron 13 | 2020 April 3 | 46 (I:55) | [end of chapter] | Gandalf tells Frodo about the One Ring in the morning. | |||
| 🌱 | 1418 Astron 30 (approximate) |
2020 April 20 | I.3 | 65 (I:74) | One summer's evening... | Frodo makes plans for leaving the Shire. | ||
| 🌼 | 1418 Thrimidge 1 (retrospect) |
2020 April 21 | I.10 | 172 (I:184) "When did you last see Gandalf?" | As I knew he was at your side, I went away on a journey of my own. | Gandalf meets Strider at the Sarn Ford. | ||
| (🌑) | ☀️ | 1418 Forelithe 2 | 2020 May 22 | I.3 | 66 (I:75) | Gandalf stayed in the Shire for over two months. | News travels of the sale of Bag End. | There is no date given by Tolkien for the selling of Bag End, or for the next section in chapter 3 when news of the sale reaches the Ivy Bush and Green Dragon "one summer's evening". Since this is a "Lunar" Readalong, I figure why not put this reading on the new moon of Forelithe 2 (since Hobbits may have considered the start of summer to be around the beginning of this month). |
| ☀️ | 1418 Forelithe 19 (retrospect) |
2020 June 8 | II.2 | 246 (I:259) "For on the eve of the sudden assault..." | And the Halfling forth shall stand. | Faramir dreams of Isildur's Bane for the first time. | ||
| 🌖 | ☀️ | 1418 Forelithe 20 (retrospect) |
2020 June 9 | 245 (I:258) "But this very year, in the days of June..." | 245 (I:259) "But still we fight on..." | "Sauron attacks Osgiliath." | This is the earliest chronological passage in the story that includes a description of the moon, and it's also the description of the event considered the start of the War of the Ring! Since the moon didn't rise until nearly midnight, the attack must have gone on far into the night, and I wouldn't be surprised if it didn't start until after dark. | |
| (retrospect) (approximate) |
255 (I:268) "In the days of fair weather we led Gollum through the woods..." | 256 (I:269) "Mirkwood is again an evil place, save where our realm is maintained." | "Thranduil is attacked, and Gollum escapes." | |||||
| ☀️ | 1418 Forelithe 29 (approximate) |
2020 June 18 | I.3 | 67 (I:76) | He went off at dawn. | Gandalf tells Frodo he will depart from Bag End next morning. | ||
| (🌘) | ☀️ | 1418 Forelithe 30 (approximate) |
2020 June 19 | Autumn was well under way... | Gandalf departs from Bag End. | If Gandalf didn't depart Bag End until Forelithe 30, then I think it would be very unlikely for the moon to be visible to the naked eye that dawn, since it was just 1 day before a new moon. | ||
| ☀️ | 1418 Mid-year's Day (retrospect) |
2020 June 21 | II.2 | 256 (I:269) "At the end of June..." | 258 (I:271) "I rode away at dawn..." | "Gandalf meets Radagast." | Gandalf is on the move. | |
| (retrospect) | I.10 | 169 (I:182) [start of Gandalf's letter] | Frodo read the letter to himself... | Gandalf leaves a letter to Frodo with Butterbur. | ||||
| 🍃 | 1418 Afterlithe 4 (retrospect) |
2020 June 26 | II.2 | 246 (I:259) "Of these words we could understand little..." | ...long have I wandered by roads forgotten... | "Boromir sets out from Minas Tirith" for Rivendell. | Boromir sets off for Rivendell just a couple of days before the 1st quarter moon. That gives him quite a few nights at the start of his journey with plenty of moonlight in the evenings. | |
| (🌔) | 🍃 | 1418 Afterlithe 10 (retrospect) |
2020 July 2 | 258 (I:271) "...I came at long last to the dwelling of Saruman." | 261 (I:274) "But in the circle of Isengard, trapped and alone, it was not easy to think that the hunters before whom all have fled or fallen would falter in the Shire far away." | "Gandalf imprisoned in Orthanc" by Saruman. | Since Gandalf arrived at Isengard before midnight (otherwise the date would have been "early hours of Afterlithe 11"), the waxing gibbous moon (only a couple of days from full) must have still been rising in the eastern sky, or if it was late enough, it could have been near its zenith in the southern sky. I wonder if the sky was clear enough that the moonlight illuminated Orthanc has he approached the stair of Saruman... | |
| 🌖 | 🍇 | 1418 Halimath 18 (retrospect) |
2020 September 8 | 261 (I:274) "I was in an evil plight..." | 262 (I:275) "The rest must be more brief." | Gandalf rescued from Orthanc by Gwaihir before dawn. | This waning gibbous moon would have been near its zenith in the southern sky about an hour before dawn, when the stars were still out. | |
| 🍇 | 1418 Halimath 20 | 2020 September 10 | I.3 | 67 (I:76) | 67 (I:77) "The next day...." | Frodo has packed and sends his belongings to Buckland. | The 2 covered carts that took Frodo's belongings to Buckland would have had the morning sun rising before them on the Great East Road, with a moon less than 1 day past its 3rd quarter sinking behind them in the west. | |
| 🍇 | 1418 Halimath 21 | 2020 September 11 | 67 (I:77) | Thursday, his birthday morning, dawned... | Frodo still awaits Gandalf. | |||
| (🌘) | 🍇 | 1418 Halimath 22 | 2020 September 12 | The next morning... | Frodo's farewell birthday dinner at Bag End. | At the end of Frodo's 50th birthday party, he and his friends would have no moon to obstruct their "glimpse of the stars" that evening, since the moon was just a few days from new, and it wouldn't have risen until just a couple of hours before dawn. Maybe the moon had already risen when the Black Riders entered the Shire. | ||
| 🍇 | 1418 Halimath 23 | 2020 September 13 | 72 (I:81) "The morning came, pale and clammy..." | "A Black Rider comes to Hobbiton at nightfall. Frodo leaves Bag End." | ||||
| 🌘 | 🍇 | 1418 Halimath 24 | 2020 September 14 | 72 (I:81) | [end of chapter] | Frodo and company encounter a Black Rider on the road, then meet Gildor and his company in the moonless evening. | Since the moon is only a couple of days from new, almost the entire night would be moonless (except for maybe a crescent rising in the hour before dawn). | |
| 🍇 | 1418 Halimath 25 | 2020 September 15 | I.4 - 5 | 86 (I:95) | [end of chapter 5] | Frodo and company pass through Old Farmer Maggot's land, then escape a Black Rider by crossing the Brandywine on the Bucklebury Ferry. | ||
| (🌘) | 🍇 | 1418 Halimath 26 | 2020 September 16 | I.6 - 7 | [start of chapter 6] | 128 (I:139) "They woke up, all four at once..." | "The Old Forest. Frodo comes to Bombadil." | |
| (🌑) | 🍇 | 1418 Halimath 27 | 2020 September 17 | I.7 - 8 | 128 (I:139) | 135 (I:146) "The vision melted into waking..." | "In the House of Tom Bombadil". | I wonder if Goldberry intentionally waited for the new moon for her "washing day" and "autumn-cleaning". |
| (🌒) | 🍇 | 1418 Halimath 28 | 2020 September 18 | I.8 | 135 (I:146) | 140? (I:151) "When he came to himself again..." | "The Hobbits captured by a Barrow-wight." | |
| (🌒) | 🍇 | 1418 Halimath 29 | 2020 September 19 | I.8 - 11 | 140? (I:151) | 176 (I:188) "There was a faint stir in the leaves..." | The hobbits are rescued by Tom Bombadil. "Frodo reaches Bree at night." | The thin crescent moon would have set in the west within a couple of hours of sunset. |
| (retrospect) | 2020 September 19 | II.2 | 262 (I:276) "True indeed!" | Then I rode on in fear. | Gandalf finishes his recounting of taming Shadowfax, and riding from Edoras to the Shire. "Gandalf visits the Gaffer." | |||
| 🍇 | 1418 Halimath 30 | 2020 September 20 | I.11 | 176 (I:188) | 182 (I:194) "The next day..." | "Frodo leaves Bree." | ||
| (retrospect) | II.2 | 262 (I:276) | 263 (I:277) "I got up before dawn..." | "Gandalf comes to Crickhollow, and reaches Bree at night." | ||||
| 🍂 | 1418 Winterfilth 1 (retrospect) |
2020 September 21 | 263 (I:277) | I galloped to Weathertop like a gale... | Gandalf rides from Bree for Weathertop. | |||
| 1418 Winterfilth 1 | 2020 September 21 | I.11 | 182 (I:194) | On the third day... | Strider and the hobbits enjoy "quiet and peaceful" travel through Chetwood. | |||
| 🍂 | 1418 Winterfilth 2 | 2020 September 22 | 183 (I:195) "The next day, the fourth..." | Strider and the hobbits enter the Midgewater Marshes. | ||||
| (🌓) | 🍂 | 1418 Winterfilth 3 | 2020 September 23 | 183 (I:195) | They had not gone far on the fifth day... | Strider and the hobbits cross the Midgewater Marshes. | ||
| (retrospect) | II.2 | 263 (I:277) | At sunrise I escaped... | Gandalf "is attacked at night on Weathertop." | Since Gandalf doesn't escape Weathertop until sunrise, at least 1/2 his battle with the Nazgûl would have been under a moonless sky (during the hours between midnight and dawn). | |||
| 🍂 | 1418 Winterfilth 4 (retrospect) |
2020 September 24 | 264 (I:278) "That helped a little..." | Gandalf escapes Weathertop. | ||||
| 🌔 | 1418 Winterfilth 4 | 2020 September 24 | I.11 | 183 (I:195) | 184 (I:196) "Next morning they set out..." | Strider and the hobbits leave the Midgewater Marshes. | "The moon was waxing, and in the early night-hours a cold grey light lay" between the Midgewater Marshes and the Weather Hills. | |
| 🍂 | 1418 Winterfilth 5 | 2020 September 25 | 184 (I:196) | 185 (I:197) "In the morning they found..." | Strider and the hobbits enter the Weather Hills. | |||
| 🌔 | 🍂 | 1418 Winterfilth 6 | 2020 September 26 | I.11 - 12 | 185 (I:197) | 198 (I:210) "Dawn was growing in the sky..." | "The camp under Weathertop attacked at night. Frodo wounded." | The Moon would have crested over the hill and ruins no later than about 3 hours after sunset, which is when it would have reached its zenith in the southern sky. |
| 🍂 | 1418 Winterfilth 7 | 2020 September 27 | I.12 | 198 (I:210) | 200 (I:212) "Four days passed..." | Strider and the hobbits flee Weathertop. | ||
| 🍂 | 1418 Winterfilth 9 (retrospect) |
2020 September 29 | 210 (I:222) "...answered Glorfindel. 'Elrond received news that troubled him...'" | ...and I came to the Bridge... | "Glorfindel leaves Rivendell." | |||
| 🌕 | 🍂 | 1418 Winterfilth 10 | 2020 September 30 | 200 (I:212) | At the end of the fifth day... | Strider and the hobbits march through the Lonelands. | Strider and the hobbits from the west, and Glorfindel from the east, are all now heading to the Last Bridge under a cloud-veiled Harvest Moon. | |
| (🌕) | 🍂 | 1418 Winterfilth 11 | 2020 October 1 | ...and on the sixth day... | Strider and the hobbits approach the east border of the Lonelands. | |||
| (retrospect) | 210 (I:222) | Two days ago I found it... | Glorfindel "drives the Riders off the Bridge of Mitheithel." | |||||
| 🍂 | 1418 Winterfilth 12 | 2020 October 2 | 200 (I:212) | 200 (I:213) "Next day, early in the morning..." | Strider and the hobbits approach the River Hoarwell. | |||
| 🍂 | 1418 Winterfilth 13 | 2020 October 3 | 200 (I:213) | 202 (I:214) "They had been two days in the country..." | "Frodo crosses the Bridge." | |||
| 🍂 | 1418 Winterfilth 15 | 2020 October 5 | 202 (I:214) | The next day... | Strider and the hobbits encounter rain. | |||
| 🍂 | 1418 Winterfilth 16 | 2020 October 6 | 202 (I:215) "In the morning he woke..." | Strider and the hobbits march on through wet weather. | ||||
| 🍂 | 1418 Winterfilth 17 | 2020 October 7 | 202 (I:215) | 204 (I:216) "The morning dawned bright and fair..." | Strider realizes they have gone too far to the north. | |||
| 🌗 | 🍂 | 1418 Winterfilth 18 | 2020 October 8 | 204 (I:216) | 211 (I:223) "Not until the grey of dawn..." | Strider and the hobbits find Bilbo's trolls. "Glorfindel finds Frodo at dusk." | The half-moon would have risen around midnight and stayed up the rest of the night, but it was veiled by clouds in the story. | |
| (🌗) | 🍂 | 1418 Winterfilth 19 | 2020 October 9 | 211 (I:223) | 212 (I:224) "The hobbits were still weary..." | Strider and the hobbits march with Glorfindel. | ||
| 🍂 | 1418 Winterfilth 20 | 2020 October 10 | 212 (I:224) | [end of Book I] | "Flight to the Ford". | |||
| (🌘) | 🍂 | 1418 Winterfilth 24 | 2020 October 14 | II.1 | [start of Book II] | [end of chapter] | "Many Meetings". | Frodo wakes in Rivendell this morning and asks "what is the time?", which has a different answer depending on where you're from in Middle-earth! Later this night, when Frodo is going back to bed, Bilbo leaves his room to go "look at the stars of Elbereth in the garden". Since it was less than 2 days until the new moon, the entire night was moonless, so it was an excellent night for star gazing! |
| 🍂 | 1418 Winterfilth 25 | 2020 October 15 | II.2 - 3 | [start of chapter] | 274 (I:287) "But autumn was waning fast..." | "Council of Elrond". | ||
| 🌕 | 🌫 | 1418 Blotmath 10/11 | 2020 October 31 | II.3 | 274 (I:287) | The hobbits had been nearly two months... | Carnil and the Hunter's Moon. | The Hunter's Moon is the full moon after the Harvest Moon. |
| (🌗) | ❄️ | 1418 Foreyule 18 | 2020 December 7 | 277 (I:290) "On the morning of the last day..." | The Fellowship of the Ring is formed under a waning half-moon. | |||
| (🌑) | ❄️ | 1418 Foreyule 25 | 2020 December 14 | 277 (I:290) | 282 (I:295) "They had been a fortnight on the way..." | "The Company of the Ring leaves Rivendell at dusk." | The Fellowship of the Ring leaves Rivendell on a long, moonless night. | |
| 🌕 | 🌄 | 1419 Afteryule 8 | 2020 December 29 | 282 (I:295) | 286 (I:299) "It was the cold chill hour before the first stir of dawn..." | The Fellowship reaches Hollin under the first full moon of the New Year. | ||
| 🌕 | 🌄 | 1419 Afteryule 9 | 2020 December 30 | 286 (I:299) | 286 (I:300) "On the third morning Caradhras rose before them..." | Frodo "saw or felt" a shadow in the night sky as the Fellowship approaches Caradhras. | ||
| 🌄 | 1419 Afteryule 11 | 2021 January 1 | 286 (I:300) | 288 (I:301) "By midnight they had climbed to the knees of the great mountains." | The Fellowship attempts to climb Caradhras. | |||
| 🌄 | 1419 Afteryule 12 | 2021 January 2 | II.3 - 4 | 288 (I:301) | 298 (I:312) "The night was old, and westward the waning moon was setting..." | The Fellowship retreats from Caradhras in the morning, then surrounded by wolves in the night. | ||
| 🌖 | 🌄 | 1419 Afteryule 13 | 2021 January 3 | II.4 | 298 (I:312) | 312 (I:326) "It was after nightfall when they had entered the Mines." | "Attack by Wolves in the early hours. The Company reaches West-gate of Moria at nightfall." | The Moon Phases in The Lord of the Rings article and the Reader's Companion point out the problem with the waning (nearly 3rd-quarter) moon shining on the West-gate before midnight on Afteryule 13. I also explain the issue in my blog post about this Magic Moonlight on the Doors of Durin. |
| 🌖 | 🌄 | 1419 Afteryule 14 | 2021 January 4 | 312 (I:326) | 318 (I:332) "He woke and found that the others were speaking softly near him..." | "A Journey in the Dark". | ||
| 🌗 | 🌄 | 1419 Afteryule 15 | 2021 January 5 | II.4 - 6 | 318 (I:332) | 345 (I:359) "Late in the night he woke." | "The Bridge of Khazad-dûm, and fall of Gandalf." | |
| 🌗 | 🌄 | 1419 Afteryule 16 | 2021 January 6 | II.6 | 345 (I:359) | 349 (I:364) "In the morning they went on again..." | The Company are escorted through Lothlórien. | The moon that rose after Gandalf's fall should have appeared as half-full, but not yet like a "sickle" for another night or 2. |
| 🌄 | 1419 Afteryule 17 | 2021 January 7 | II.6 - 7 | 349 (I:364) | 357 (I:373) "When they woke they found that the light of day was broad..." | "The Company comes to Caras Galadhon at evening." | ||
| 🌄 | 1419 Afteryule 18 | 2021 January 8 | II.7 | 358 (I:373) | 360 (I:375) "One evening Frodo and Sam were walking together..." | The Company rests in Lórien. | ||
| 🌄 | 1419 Afteryule 23 (retrospect) |
2021 January 13 | III.5 | 501 (II:105) "Long time I fell..." | 502 (II:105) "Ice fell like rain." | "Gandalf pursues the Balrog to the peak of Zirakzigil." | ||
| (🌒) | 🌄 | 1419 Afteryule 25 (retrospect) |
2021 January 15 | 502 (II:105) | 502 (II:106) "Naked I was sent back..." | "He casts down the Balrog, and passes away." | I'm a little disappointed Tolkien never described the "sickle moon" during the 3-day Battle of the Peak, since it was a new moon the day before it started, and that seems to be one of his favorite lunar imagery. Maybe it was a detail Gandalf didn't think was important. Or maybe the moon couldn't be seen after sunset through all the "vapour and steam" and ice that "fell like rain". | |
| (🌗) | 🌧 | 1419 Solmath 15 | 2021 February 4 | II.7 - 8 | 360 (I:375) | 369 (I:385) "In the morning, as they were beginning to pack their slender goods..." | "The Mirror of Galadriel". | This event happens to fall on the evening of a 3rd quarter moon, which means it set around noon and did not rise again until around midnight. So there would have been no moonlight to interfere with the light of Eärendil (the Evening Star) in the early evening. |
| (retrospect) | III.5 | 502 (II:106) | And so at the last Gwaihir the Windlord found me... | "Gandalf returns to life, and lies in a trance." | ||||
| 🌧 | 1419 Solmath 16 | 2021 February 5 | II.8 | 369 (I:385) | [end of chapter] | "Farewell to Lórien". | If Mid-year's Day is approximately on the summer solstice, and Shire New Year's Day is approximately on the winter solstice, then this date would be approximately half way between the winter solstice and spring equinox. | |
| 🌧 | 1419 Solmath 17 | 2021 February 6 | II.9 | [start of chapter] | As the third day of their voyage wore on... | "The Great River". | ||
| (retrospect) | III.5 | 502 (II:106) | 503 (II:106) "Thence by strange roads I came..." | "Gwaihir bears Gandalf to Lórien." | ||||
| 🌧 | 1419 Solmath 18 | 2021 February 7 | II.9 | 380 (I:396) | 381 (I:397) "In the next day or two..." | The Company pass beyond Mirkwood and approach the River Limlight. | ||
| 🌧 | 1419 Solmath 19 | 2021 February 8 | 381 (I:397) | 383 (I:399) "In the dead hours Frodo came out of a deep dark sleep..." | Sam glimpses Gollum following them on a log. | Gollum could lurk around the Company's boats under a moonless sky on this night, with only a thin crescent moon rising just a couple of hours before dawn. | ||
| 🌧 | 1419 Solmath 20 | 2021 February 9 | 383 (I:399) | 384 (I:400) "...until the seventh day." | Frodo spots Gollum lurking around the boats before dawn. | |||
| 🌑 | 🌧 | 1419 Solmath 22 | 2021 February 11 | 384 (I:400) | 384 (I:401) "The next day the country on either side began to change rapidly." | Sam sees an unlikely new moon "glimmering in the remote lakes". | See also Shire-reckoning.com's Moon Phases in The Lord of the Rings. | |
| 🌒 | 🌧 | 1419 Solmath 23 | 2021 February 12 | 384 (I:401) | 389 (I:405) "When the day came the mood of the world about them had become soft and sad." | "The boats are attacked at night near Sarn Gebir." | Later, Sam has a stirring reckoning about the moon, and Aragorn informs him that "Winter is nearly gone". | |
| 🌧 | 1419 Solmath 24 | 2021 February 13 | 389 (I:405) | 392 (I:408) "Nothing happened that night..." | The Company circumvent Sarn Gebir. | |||
| 🌧 | 1419 Solmath 25 | 2021 February 14 | II.9 - 10 | 392 (I:408) | 395 (I:411) "The day came like fire and smoke." | "The Company pass the Argonath and camp at Parth Galen." | ||
| 🌧 | 1419 Solmath 26 | 2021 February 15 | II.10 | 395 (I:411) | [end of book] | "The Breaking of the Fellowship." | ||
| 🌒 | III.1 - 2 | [start of Book III] | 421 (II:23) "There in the still cool hour before dawn..." | "The Departure of Boromir". "Aragorn sets out in pursuit of the Orcs at evening." | Since Boromir's funeral was around mid-afternoon, then the waxing crescent moon would have been around its zenith in the southern sky, trailing a couple of hours behind the sun. It's not described in this scene in the story, but I can imagine it was practically directly above Tol Brandir as his funeral-boat went over the falls and as they sang their Lament for Boromir. | |||
| 🌒 | III.3 | [start of chapter] | 450 (II:53) "Neither Pippin nor Merry remembered much of the later part of the journey." | "Meriadoc and Peregrin captured." | Since the waxing crescent moon had not yet set, it must have been early evening when Pippin dropped his brooch, probably sometime before 9 P.M. | |||
| (retrospect) | IV.5 | 666 (II:274) "...I heard the blowing of that horn..." | And on the third night after... | "Boromir's horn is heard in Minas Tirith." | ||||
| 🌒 | 🌧 | 1419 Solmath 27 | 2021 February 16 | III.2 | 421 (II:23) | 426 (II:28) "Before dawn was in the sky..." | "Aragorn reaches the west-cliff at sunrise." | Aragorn decides they should rest at nightfall, since there is not enough moonlight even for a Ranger to track by, and they don't want to miss another clue, like Pippin's brooch they found earlier. "If the Moon gave enough light, we would use it, but alas! he sets early and is yet young and pale". |
| III.3 | 450 (II:53) | ...he lay as he fell, till black dreams took him. | Merry and Pippin are "driven like cattle" to the south end of the Downs. | |||||
| 🌒 | 🌧 | 1419 Solmath 28 | 2021 February 17 | III.2 | 426 (II:28) | 428 (II:30) "As before Legolas was first afoot..." | Aragorn hears "horses galloping, passing in the West", then tracks the Orcs through the Eastemnet. | |
| 🌒 | III.3 | 450 (II:53) | 457 (II:60) "...and too afraid to move." | "Éomer overtakes the Orcs just outside Fangorn Forest." | The broad crescent moon would have set this night about an hour or 2 before midnight. | |||
| IV.1 | [start of Book IV] | 604 (II:210) "Did you see them again, Mr. Frodo?" | Frodo and Samwise journey through the eastern Emyn Muil. | |||||
| 🌒 | (retrospect) | IV.5 | 666 (II:274) | 666? (II:275) "...and has passed down the River to the Sea." | Faramir sits by the River "under the young pale moon", then sees the funeral boat of Boromir at midnight. | |||
| 🌧 | 1419 Solmath 29 | 2021 February 18 | III.2 | 428 (II:30) | 429 (II:32) "So the night passed." | "The Rohirrim attack at sunrise and destroy the Orcs." | ||
| III.3 - 4 | 457 (II:60) | 478 (II:81) "They woke to find..." | "Merry and Pippin escape and meet Treebeard." | |||||
| 🌓 | IV.1 | 604 (II:210) | 618? (II:225) "...and if possible liked the new Gollum, the Smeagol, less than the old." | "Frodo descends from the Emyn Muil and meets Gollum." | Have you ever tamed a Sméagol in the pale moonlight? | |||
| 🌧 | 1419 Solmath 30 | 2021 February 19 | III.2 | 429 (II:32) | 442? (II:45) "The tree rustled. There was no other sound." | "Éomer returning to Edoras meets Aragorn." | ||
| III.4 | 478 (II:81) | 484 (II:87) "The next day they spent..." | "Entmoot begins." | |||||
| 🌓 | IV.1 - 2 | 618? (II:225) | 625 (II:232) "That night drew to its end..." | Gollum leads Frodo and Samwise to the Marshes. | ||||
| 🌔 | 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 1 | 2021 February 20 | III.2 | 442? (II:45) | [end of chapter] | Horse thief Saruman comes out after moonset. | This scene takes place before dawn on this date, since the moon would have set just after midnight. |
| III.4 | 484 (II:87) | 484 (II:87) "A second night came and still the Ents held conclave under hurrying clouds and fitful stars." | "Entmoot continues." | |||||
| 🌔 | III.5 - 6 | [start of chapter 5] | 506 (II:110) "The waxing moon sank into the cloudy West." | "Aragorn meets Gandalf the White. They set out for Edoras." | ||||
| 🌔 | IV.2 | 625 (II:232) | 630 (II:237) "It was not until the moon had sunk..." | "Frodo begins the passage of the Dead Marshes at dawn." | Frodo, Sam, and Gollum encounter a flying Nazgûl over the Dead Marshes, a "shadow of horror" that "scudded across the moon". | |||
| 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 2 | 2021 February 21 | III.4 | 484 (II:88) | [end of chapter] | "Entmoot ends in afternoon. The Ents march on Isengard". | ||
| 🌔 | (retrospect) | III.9 | 565 (II:170) "We came down over the last ridge into Nan Curunír..." | "My business is with Isengard tonight, with rock and stone." | The Ents reach Isengard at night, though the "Moon did not appear through the clouds". | Tolkien's scheme quoted in the Reader's Companion says the host marched out of Isengard around 10:30 P.M. | ||
| 🌔 | III.6 - 7 | 506 (II:110) | 526 (II:131) "At dawn the horns sounded..." | "Gandalf comes to Edoras and heals Théoden." | Later that night, on their way to the Fords of Isen, they make camp "under the starry sky and the waxing moon". | |||
| 🌔 | IV.2 | 630 (II:237) | 631 (II:239) "At last, on the fifth morning..." | "Frodo comes to the end of the Marshes." | ||||
| 🌔 | 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 3 | 2021 February 22 | III.7 | 526 (II:131) | 532 (II:137) "It was now past midnight..." | "Théoden retreats to Helm's Deep. Battle of the Hornburg begins." | |
| (retrospect) | III.9 | 565 (II:170) | 570? (II:176) "It was deep night." | "Ents complete the destruction of Isengard." | ||||
| 🌔 | 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 4 | 2021 February 23 | III.7 - 8 | 532 (II:137) | 550? (II:157) "...by midnight the Fords were nearly five leagues behind." | Battle of the Hornburg ends at dawn. | The waxing gibbous moon would have set over the Battle of the Hornburg around 3 A.M. |
| 🌔 | "Théoden and Gandalf set out from Helm's Deep for Isengard." | It must have been only a couple of hours before dawn on the 5th when the Huorns passed Théoden's camp on the Road to Isengard in the night, since "the moon was gone" but "stars were shining above". Implying the moon had already set and wasn't just covered by clouds. | ||||||
| 🌔 | (retrospect) | III.9 | 570? (II:176) | 571? (II:177) "It was a misty, moisty morning..." | Ents flood Isengard. | "The Moon was sinking behind the western mountains" when the Ents began the flooding Isengard. | ||
| IV.2 | 631 (II:239) | 635 (II:242) "About an hour after midnight..." | "Frodo reaches the slag-mounds on the edge of the Desolation of the Morannon." | |||||
| 🌔 | 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 5 | 2021 February 24 | III.8 - 11 | 550? (II:157) | 596 (II:201) "Over the plains Shadowfax was flying, needing no urging and no guidance." | "Théoden reaches Isengard at noon. Parley with Saruman in Orthanc... Gandalf sets out with Peregrin for Minas Tirith." | Just before midnight of the 6th, the moon would have been just past its zenith in the southern sky, making its way west, when Pippin looked into the palantír by Dol Baran. |
| 🌔 | IV.2 - 4 | 635 (II:242) | 648 (II:256) "So soon they struggled on once more..." | "Frodo hides in sight of the Morannon, and leaves at dusk." | "The moon was now three nights from the full, but it did not climb over the mountains until nearly midnight, and the early night was very dark." | |||
| V.2 | [start of chapter] | Soon all were ready to depart... | Aragorn ponders his path to Minas Tirith, but decides Merry will go with Théoden. | |||||
| 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 6 | 2021 February 25 | III.11 | 596 (II:201) | [end of book] | Gandalf tells Pippin about the palantíri as they ride with Shadowfax to Edoras. | ||
| 🌔 | IV.4 | 648 (II:256) | 650 (II:258) "At the first signs of day they halted again." | Frodo, Sam, and Gollum pass into the northern marches of fair Ithilien under round moon. | ||||
| (retrospect) | V.1 | 747 (III:19) "There had been the first ride..." | ...riding in the night. | Gandalf and Pippin reach Edoras at dawn. | ||||
| 🌔 | V.2 | 773 (III:46) | 782 (III:56) "And while Théoden went by slow paths in the hills, the Grey Company passed swiftly over the plain..." | "Aragorn overtaken by the Dúnedain in the early hours" but before moonset. "Théoden sets out from the Hornburg for Harrowdale. Aragorn sets out later" after deciding he needs to take the Paths of the Dead. | ||||
| 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 7 | 2021 February 26 | IV.4 - 5 | 650 (II:258) | [end of chapter 5] | "Frodo taken by Faramir to Henneth Annûn." | ||
| 🌕 | V.1 | [start of Book V] | 748 (III:20) "Pippin became drowsy again..." | On their way to Minas Tirith, Gandalf and Pippin see the Beacons of Gondor lit under a full moon. | ||||
| V.2 | 782 (III:56) | 785 (III:58) "Then she turned and vanished into the night." | "Aragorn comes to Dunharrow at nightfall." | |||||
| 🌕 | 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 8 | 2021 February 27 | IV.6 - 7 | [start of chapter 6] | 696 (II:305) "...but he returned with the first glimmer of light..." | "Frodo leaves Henneth Annûn." | Frodo and Sam see the full moon from the Window on the West before dawn. |
| 🌕 | V.1 | 748 (III:20) | Pippin woke to the sound of voices. | Pippin "did not know that Frodo from far away looked on that same moon as it set beyond Gondor ere the coming of the day." | ||||
| V.2 | 785 (III:58) | 790 (III:63) "But when the dawn came..." | "Aragorn takes the 'Paths of the Dead' at daybreak; he reaches Erech at midnight." | There was no description of the moon over Aragon on the way to the Stone of Erech from the 'Paths of the Dead'. Since it was only the night after the full moon, it would have been round and bright, rising before the "King of the Dead" and his "Shadow Host" on the way to the Hill of Erech, but they reach it "in a darkness as black as the caverns in the mountains" just before midnight when the moon would have almost reached its zenith in the southern sky. This was the night before the darkness started flowing out of Mordor, so I guess it was just overcast in that area. | ||||
| 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 9 | 2021 February 28 | IV.7 | 696 (II:305) | 698 (II:307) "It must have been a little after midnight..." | "At dusk Frodo reaches the Morgul-road." | ||
| V.1 | 748 (III:20) | [end of chapter] | "Gandalf reaches Minas Tirith." | |||||
| V.2 | 790 (III:63) | But the next day there came no dawn... | "Aragorn sets out from Erech and comes to Calembel." | |||||
| V.3 | [start of chapter] | 800 (III:73) "...he fell asleep at last in his tent." | "Théoden comes to Dunharrow." | |||||
| (retrospect) | V.9 | 874? (III:150) "And lo! in the darkness of Mordor..." | 875 (III:151) "...then came the day without dawn..." | "Darkness begins to flow out of Mordor." Aragorn leads the Shadow Host through Lamedon. | ||||
| 🌖 | 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 10 | 2021 March 1 | IV.7 - 8 | 698 (II:307) | 710? (II:319) "And now the red light in the sky..." | "Frodo passes the Cross-roads, and sees the Morgul-host set forth." | Frodo and Same see a last glimpse of the moon escaping the creeping gloom of Mordor just before dawn. Since it was 2 nights past the full moon, it would have set just a couple of hours later. |
| V.2 | 790 (III:63) | [end of chapter] | "The Dawnless Day." | |||||
| V.3 | 800 (III:73) | 804 (III:78) "...they camped that night." | "The Muster of Rohan: the Rohirrim ride from Harrowdale." | |||||
| V.4 | [start of chapter] | 815 (III:89) "The next day came..." | "Faramir rescued by Gandalf outside the gates of the City." | |||||
| (retrospect) | V.9 | 875 (III:151) | ...and on the third day we came to Linhir... | "Aragorn crosses Ringló." | ||||
| 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 11 | 2021 March 2 | IV.8 | 710? (II:319) | 714 (II:323) "And so Gollum found them hours later..." | "Gollum visits Shelob". | ||
| V.3 | 804 (III:78) | And so King Théoden departed from his own realm... | Théoden rides through the Folde and past Halifirien. | |||||
| V.4 | 815 (III:89) | 817 (III:91) "The next day, though the darkness had reached its full..." | "Denethor sends Faramir to Osgiliath." | |||||
| (retrospect) | V.9 | 875 (III:151) | But soon Aragorn arose... | "Aragorn reaches Linhir and crosses into Lebennin." | ||||
| (retrospect) | VI.6 | 979 (III:257) "...for to be sure Ents have played their part." | He bowed to the Lord and Lady of Lórien. | "Eastern Rohan is invaded from the north. First assault on Lórien." | ||||
| 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 12 | 2021 March 3 | IV.8 - 9 | 714 (II:323) | 719? (II:327) "At length Frodo, groping along the left-hand wall..." | "Gollum leads Frodo into Shelob's lair." | ||
| V.4 | 817 (III:91) | 818 (III:91) "The bells of day..." | "Faramir retreats to the Causeway Forts." | |||||
| (retrospect) | V.9 | 875 (III:151) | ...we hunted our foes through a day and a night... | "Aragorn drives the enemy towards Pelargir." | ||||
| (retrospect) | VI.6 | 979 (III:257) | ...and if he had there would have been no home to return to. | "The Ents defeat the invaders of Rohan." | ||||
| 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 13 | 2021 March 4 | IV.9 - 10 | 719? (II:327) | [end of book] | Frodo is poisoned by Shelob then "captured by the Orcs of Cirith Ungol." | ||
| V.3 | 804 (III:78) | [end of chapter] | "Théoden in Drúadan Forest." | |||||
| V.4 | 818 (III:91) | 822 (III:95) "but when morning, or its dim shadow..." | "The Pelennor is over-run. Faramir is wounded." | |||||
| (retrospect) | V.9 | 875 (III:151) | 877 (III:153) "For during that evening and night many ships were made ready and manned;" | "Aragorn reaches Pelargir and captures the fleet." | ||||
| 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 14 | 2021 March 5 | V.4 | 822 (III:95) | 824 (III:98) "Now at last in the middle night..." | "Minas Tirith is besieged." | ||
| V.5 | [start of chapter] | 836 (III:110) "It was night. On either side of the road..." | "The Rohirrim led by the Wild Men come to the Grey Wood." | |||||
| (retrospect) | V.9 | 877 (III:153) | But at midnight hope was indeed born anew. | Aragorn's fleet sets forth from Pelargir in the morning. | ||||
| VI.1 | [start of Book VI] | 912? (III:189) "Frodo sat for a while..." | "Samwise finds Frodo in the Tower." | |||||
| 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 15 | 2021 March 6 | V.4 | 824 (III:98) | [end of chapter] | "In the early hours the Witch-king breaks the Gates of the City... The horns of the Rohirrim are heard at cockcrow." | The moon would have just started to rise when "the assault was loosed" on Minas Tirith around midnight. Of course it wouldn't have been visible anyway, since the gloom of Mordor was still blocking it from view. | |
| (retrospect) | V.9 | 877 (III:153) | ...until dawn whitened the foam at our prows. | At midnight a fresh wind comes from the Sea and speeds Aragorn's fleet. | ||||
| (🌗) | V.5 - 8 | 836 (III:110) | 871 (III:147) "And when he could labour no more..." | "The Battle of the Pelennor Fields". | The 3rd quarter moon would have set around noon. Since the south-west wind started clearing away the gloom of Mordor that morning, the Sun and Moon were revealed in time for Aragorn's fleet to arrive at the Battle of the Pelennor Fields at mid-morning (9 o'clock as they call it in the Shire). | |||
| VI.1 - 2 | 912? (III:189) | 922 (III:199) "...putting away all fear he cast himself into a deep untroubled sleep." | "Frodo and Samwise escape and begin their journey north along the Morgai." | |||||
| 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 16 | 2021 March 7 | V.8 - 9 | 871 (III:147) | [end of chapter 9] | "The Last Debate". | ||
| VI.2 | 922 (III:199) | 927 (III:204) "When a grey light crept back over..." | "Frodo from the Morgai looks out over the camp to Mount Doom." | |||||
| 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 17 | 2021 March 8 | 927 (III:204) | 927 (III:205) "At the first hint of grey light..." | Frodo and Sam continue north along the Morgai. | |||
| 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 18 | 2021 March 9 | V.10 | [start of chapter] | 885 (III:161) "So the next day..." | "The Host of the West marches from Minas Tirith." | ||
| VI.2 | 927 (III:205) | 931 (III:209) "Don't you know we're at war?" | Frodo "is overtaken by Orcs on the road from Durthang to Udûn." | |||||
| 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 19 | 2021 March 10 | V.10 | 885 (III:161) | The day after, being the third day since... | "The Host comes to Morgul Vale." | ||
| VI.2 - 3 | 931 (III:209) | 935 (III:212) "So the desperate journey went on..." | "Frodo and Samwise escape and begin their journey along the road to the Barad-dûr." | When Sam was surveying the lay of the land south of the Isenmouthe around dawn, he could have spotted a crescent moon in the south-east just above Mt. Doom, but it was surely obscured by the smoke still billowing out of the Mountain. | ||||
| 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 20 | 2021 March 11 | V.10 | 885 (III:161) | It was near the end of the second day of their march... | The Host marches north through Ithilien. | ||
| VI.3 | 935 (III:212) | There came at last a dreadful nightfall... | Frodo and Sam's "desperate journey" along the road to Barad-dûr continues. | |||||
| VI.5 | [start of chapter] | 961 (III:239) "But in the morning..." | Éowyn leaves her bed in the Houses of Healing. Faramir learns of her "grief and unrest". | |||||
| (🌑) | 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 21 | 2021 March 12 | V.10 | 885 (III:161) | 886 (III:162) "...the dread of them could not be shaken off." | The Host evades an ambush. | The new moon should have been just before midnight the night of the 21st, according to the 1942 moon phases. |
| VI.5 | 961 (III:239) | And so the fifth day came... | Faramir and Éowyn begin to walk and talk daily in the garden of the Houses of Healing. | |||||
| 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 22 | 2021 March 13 | VI.3 | 935 (III:212) | 936 (III:213) "The hateful night passed slowly and reluctantly." | "The dreadful nightfall. Frodo and Samwise leave the road and turn south to Mount Doom." | ||
| 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 23 | 2021 March 14 | V.10 | 886 (III:162) | 887 (III:163) "At nightfall of the fifth day of the march..." | "The Host passes out of Ithilien. Aragorn dismisses the faint-hearted." | ||
| VI.3 | 936 (III:213) | 939 (III:217) "The Mountain too slept uneasily." | "Frodo and Samwise cast away their arms and gear." | "At least, I know that such things happened, but I cannot see them. No taste of food, no feel of water, no sound of wind, no memory of tree or grass or flower, no image of moon or star are left to me." Poor Frodo. | ||||
| 🌒 | 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 24 | 2021 March 15 | V.10 | 887 (III:163) | It grew cold. As morning came... | "The Host camps in the Desolation of the Morannon." | The moon was "four nights old" on the eve of the destruction of the One Ring, but "there were smokes and fumes that rose out of the earth and the white crescent was shrouded in the mists of Mordor." Since this moon was between 2 and 3 days old, it could have looked similar to the moon of Durin's Day (which can't be on the same day as a new moon according to some fan theories). |
| VI.3 | 939 (III:217) | 940 (III:217) "Then sleep took him, and the dim light of the last day of their quest..." | "Frodo and Samwise make their last journey to the feet of Mount Doom." | |||||
| (🌒) | 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 25 | 2021 March 16 | V.10 | 887 (III:163) | [end of Book V] | "The Host is surrounded on the Slag-hills." | The day of the destruction of the One Ring, and from this day on, the start of the New Year in Gondor (but not yet the start of the Fourth Age). |
| VI.3 - 4 | 940 (III:217) | 951 (III:229) "...and borne far away out of the darkness and the fire." | "Frodo and Samwise reach the Sammath Naur. Gollum seizes the Ring and falls in the Cracks of Doom." | |||||
| VI.5 | 961 (III:239) | 963 (III:241) "The days that followed were golden..." | Tidings come to Minas Tirith of the "Downfall of Barad-dûr and passing of Sauron." | If you reckon the Shire Calendar's New Year's Day from December 25th in a non-leap-year (as Tolkien did when aligning the moon phases of 1941-42 to the story), then Rethe 25 would fall on March 20th in our calendar, and March 20th is also the usual date of the vernal equinox in our time. | ||||
| (🌓) | 🌬 | 1419 Rethe 29/30 (approximate) |
2021 March 20 | 963 (III:241) | 965 (III:243) "All things were now made ready in the City..." | Faramir assumes his authority as Steward of Gondor, and Merry departs for the Field of Cormallen. | ||
| (🌔) | 🌱 | 1419 Astron 6 | 2021 March 27 | Appx.B | 1094 (III:375) "Three times Lórien had been assailed from Dol Guldur..." | ...all the wide forest between was given to the Beornings and the Woodmen. | The New Year of the Elves, when Celeborn and Thranduil met in Mirkwood and redrew its borders. | The full moon was the next night. Note: I have avoided including readings outside of the main story, but added this one mainly to include a link to the related blog post in this list. |
| 🌖 | 🌱 | 1419 Astron 8 | 2021 March 29 | VI.4 | 951 (III:229) | 957 (III:235) "And in the morning they rose again..." | "The Ring-bearers are honoured on the Field of Cormallen." | The full moon was the night before, so the moon on this night would still be very round. |
| 🌱 | 1419 Astron 9 | 2021 March 30 | 957 (III:235) | 'But I missed a lot, seemingly.' | They stay a couple of weeks in Ithilien. | |||
| 🌱 | 1419 Astron 27 | 2021 April 17 | ...and they sailed from Cair Andros down Anduin to Osgiliath; | The Captains of the West set sail "from Cair Andros down Anduin". | These next 3 events are quoted in the Reader's Companion from Tolkien's "latest and only complete" Time-Scheme for LOTR: Marquette MSS 4/2/18. | |||
| 🌱 | 1419 Astron 28 | 2021 April 18 | and there they remained for one day; | Host reaches Osgiliath. | ||||
| 🌱 | 1419 Astron 30 | 2021 April 20 | [end of chapter] | Host camps in the Pelennor. | ||||
| VI.5 | 965 (III:243) | 965 (III:244) "And when the sun rose in the clear morning..." | "All things were now made ready in the City" for the Return of the King. | |||||
| (🌔) | 🌼 | 1419 Thrimidge 1 | 2021 April 21 | 965 (III:244) | 968 (III:246) "...after the ending of the Third Age of the world into the new age it preserved the memory and the glory of the years that were gone." | "Crowning of King Elessar". | This was 2 days after the 1st quarter moon. There was no moon in the sky for the coronation, since it occurred in the morning and the waxing gibbous moon wouldn't have risen until an hour or two past noon on this day. But it would have been out for the evening's festivities, not setting until an hour or so past midnight. | |
| (🌕) | 🌼 | 1419 Thrimidge 6 (approximate) |
2021 April 26 | 968 (III:246) | 969 (III:248) "So the glad days passed..." | Faramir becomes Prince of Ithilien. | ||
| 🌼 | 1419 Thrimidge 8 | 2021 April 28 | 969 (III:248) | 970 (III:248) "And Aragorn himself waits for a sign." | "Éomer and Éowyn depart for Rohan with the sons of Elrond." | |||
| (🌒) | 🌼 | 1419 Thrimidge* 25 | 2021 May 15 | 970 (III:248) | 972 (III:250) "...and when the month of June entered in..." | "King Elessar finds the sapling of the White Tree." | * I'm defying the date given in Appendix B, because I agree with the Reader's Companion assessment that it seems like "an impossibly short period of time" for the events following finding the sapling to occur in only 6 days. Either way, there would have been a waxing crescent moon setting only a couple of hours after sunset, probably before Gandalf took Aragorn out of the City by night, then rising the next day around mid-morning, probably after Aragorn finds the sapling. | |
| (🌕) | ☀️ | 1419 Forelithe 6* (approximate) |
2021 May 26 | 972 (III:250) | And he set watchmen upon the walls. | The sapling becomes "laden with blossom". | * See note above. There is no specific date given for when the sapling of the White Tree becomes laden with blossom, which is the sign Aragorn the King Elessar apparently takes as the sign that Arwen is on her way to the City, which prompts him to set watchmen along the walls. The text only says that it happened "when the month of June entered in". | |
| (🌔) | ☀️ | 1419 1 Lithe | 2021 June 20 | 972 (III:251) "...and all the stars flowered in the sky." | "Arwen comes to the City." | When Arwen and her escort arrived to the City just after sunset, there would have been a waxing gibbous moon near its zenith in the twilight sky. | ||
| ☀️ | 1419 Mid-year's Day | 2021 June 21 | 972 (III:251) | [end of chapter] | "Wedding of Elessar and Arwen." | If King Elessar's "New Reckoning" was already established and had taken effect, then this date would have been T.A. 3019 Cermië 7 by the New Reckoning. According to Tolkien's scheme quoted in the Reader's Companion, the day of the wedding, and the following 14 days, were made days of festival. | ||
| 🍃 | 1419 Afterlithe 15 | 2021 July 7 | VI.6 | [start of chapter] | 975 (III:253) "In three days, as the King had said..." | Frodo begs "leave to depart soon." Arwen gives Frodo her place to sail into the West. | ||
| 🍃 | 1419 Afterlithe 18 | 2021 July 10 | 975 (III:253) | At last the day of departure came... | "Éomer returns to Minas Tirith." | This is the day after the new moon. | ||
| 🍃 | 1419 Afterlithe 22 | 2021 July 14 | 976 (III:254) "At length after fifteen days..." | "The funeral escort of King Théoden sets out." | ||||
| (🌖) | 🌿 | 1419 Wedmath 7 | 2021 July 29 | 976 (III:254) | For after three days... | "The escort comes to Edoras." | This was nearly a week after the full moon, so a waning gibbous moon would have been setting before them on the westward road to Meduseld. Maybe the escort even had a view of the moon sinking towards the Golden Hall that morning as they approached. | |
| 🌿 | 1419 Wedmath 10 | 2021 August 1 | 978 (III:256) "When the feast was over..." | "Funeral of King Théoden." | The funeral of King Théoden took place the day after the moon's 3rd quarter, so that evening would have been fairly dark, and there would be no moon for the feast, unless it continued past midnight. This day was also the 1st day of Autumn (Yávië / Iavas) by the Reckoning of Rivendell in T.A. 3019. It was also a Mersday by Shire Reckoning, which was roughly equivalent to a Saturday in modern times. | |||
| 🌿 | 1419 Wedmath 14 | 2021 August 5 | 978 (III:256) | ...and came at length to Helm's Deep... | "The guests take leave of King Éomer." | |||
| 🌿 | 1419 Wedmath 18 | 2021 August 9 | 978 (III:257) "From Deeping-coomb they rode to Isengard..." | "They come to Helm's Deep." | This was the day after the new moon. | |||
| (🌒) | 🌿 | 1419 Wedmath 22 | 2021 August 13 | 978 (III:257) | 982 (III:261) "On the sixth day since their parting..." | "They come to Isengard; they take leave of the King of the West at sunset." | When they take leave of the King of the West at sunset, there also would have been a broad, waxing crescent moon out, just a couple of days from its first quarter. The weekday for this date, on which they came to "the Treegarth of Orthanc", is also a "Trewsday" by Shire Reckoning (a.k.a. Trees Day). | |
| (🌔) | 🌿 | 1419 Wedmath 28 | 2021 August 19 | 982 (III:261) | 984 (III:263) "Next day they went on..." | "They overtake Saruman; Saruman turns towards the Shire." | A waxing gibbous moon would have been rising when they overtook Saruman at sundown. | |
| 🌿 | 1419 Wedmath 29 | 2021 August 20 | 984 (III:263) | September came in with golden days and silver nights... | They reach northern Dunland. | |||
| (🌕) | 🍇 | 1419 Halimath 1 (approximate) |
2021 August 22 | 985 (III:263) "So they passed into Eregion..." | They ride towards the Swanfleet river and the old ford. | Hammond & Scull point out in their Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion that the phrase "silver nights" is probably referring to the fact that this was the date of the full moon. | ||
| 🍇 | 1419 Halimath 6 | 2021 August 27 | 985 (III:263) | But at length all was said, and they parted again for a while... | "They halt in sight of the Mountains of Moria." | On the dawn of this "fair morning", when "the travellers saw away in the east the Sun catching" the 3 peaks of the Mountains of Moria, there also would have been a waning gibbous moon in the opposite direction sinking into the west. | ||
| 🍇 | 1419 Halimath 13 | 2021 September 3 | 985 (III:264) "At last one evening..." | "Celeborn and Galadriel depart, the others set out for Rivendell." | Since this date was 3 days before the new moon, the waning crescent moon was still wide enough and bright enough to be seen clearly on this morning high above the dawn, and probably all day as well until the moon set a few hours before sunset. | |||
| 🍇 | 1419 Halimath 21 | 2021 September 11 | 985 (III:264) | After the celebration of Bilbo's birthday... | "They return to Rivendell." | |||
| (🌓) | 🍇 | 1419 Halimath 23 (approximate) |
2021 September 13 | 986 (III:264) "When nearly a fortnight had passed..." | Gandalf and the hobbits rest in Rivendell. | This happens to be the date of the moon's first quarter, and it's also the start of the Enderi (Middle-days) of Aragorn the King Elessar's New Reckoning (assuming it had been established by now): 3 days which are the middle of that calendar, and presumably a time of holiday and festivities, along with the day before which definitely was a holiday in the Reunited Kingdom, in honor of Frodo the Ring-bearer's birthday. | ||
| (🌖) | 🍂 | 1419 Winterfilth 4 | 2021 September 24 | 986 (III:264) | 988 (III:267) "And with that he fell fast asleep again." | Frodo and Sam feel it's time to return. Bilbo gives Frodo his "Translations from the Elvish". | This day also marks the first of the Enderi (Middle-days) of the Calendar of Imladris of this year. It's interesting that the hobbits decided to leave Rivendell during the Enderi, which were likely holidays and a time of celebration for the Elves. The story doesn't mention anything about this holiday, but I could still speculate that the holiday might have played a part in their decision to leave: Maybe they wanted to leave then because the Elvish holiday reminded them of the holidays they were missing at home? Or maybe they decided to leave in the middle of the Enderi since that's how they wanted to remember Rivendell, during a time of festival. | |
| 🍂 | 1419 Winterfilth 5 | 2021 September 25 | VI.6 - 7 | 988 (III:267) | 989 (III:268) "When they came to the Ford of Bruinen..." | "Gandalf and the Hobbits leave Rivendell." | ||
| 🍂 | 1419 Winterfilth 6 | 2021 September 26 | VI.7 | 989 (III:268) | By the end of the next day... | "They cross the Ford of Bruinen; Frodo feels the first return of pain." | This day also marks the last known Rivendell Reckoning date corresponding with a Shire-reckoning date. We know there were at least 3 Enderi (Middle-days) of the Calendar of Imladris that year, ending on this date, but if it happened to be a leap-year in that Elvish calendar, there would have been 3 more after that (each leap-year has 3 leap-days since the Calendar of Imladris has a leap-year only once every 12 years). See the notes on aligning the Calendar of Imladris to the Shire Calendar for more details. | |
| 🍂 | 1419 Winterfilth 7 | 2021 September 27 | At length they came to Weathertop... | Frodo's pain passes, and now the journey goes well. | The moon's 3rd quarter was about a day after this, so there would have been a waning gibbous moon this week, and our travellers could have had some moonlit evenings initially on their journey from Rivendell, but the moon rises later and later each night. After this day, it wouldn't rise until midnight or later. | |||
| 🍂 | 1419 Winterfilth 23 | 2021 October 13 | So it was that near the end of a wild and wet evening... | Gandalf and the hobbits pass by Weathertop. | ||||
| 🍂 | 1419 Winterfilth 28 | 2021 October 18 | 994 (III:274) "The travellers stayed in Bree all the next day..." | "They reach Bree at nightfall." | ||||
| 🍂 | 1419 Winterfilth 29 | 2021 October 19 | 994 (III:274) | 995 (III:274) "...but the next morning they got up early..." | The 'Travellers' stay in Bree for the day, and the Prancing Pony becomes crowded as word spreads about their visit. | |||
| (🌕) | 🍂 | 1419 Winterfilth 30 | 2021 October 20 | VI.7 - 8 | 995 (III:274) | 1000 (III:279) "So the next day they set out..." | "They leave Bree. The 'Travellers' come to the Brandywine Bridge at dark." | |
| 🌫 | 1419 Blotmath 1 | 2021 October 21 | VI.8 | 1000 (III:279) | 1003 (III:282) "The travellers were glad to leave..." | "They are arrested at Frogmorton." | ||
| (🌖) | 🌫 | 1419 Blotmath 2 | 2021 October 22 | 1003 (III:282) | 1014 (III:294) "Farmer Cotton's household and all his guests were up early..." | "They come to Bywater and rouse the Shire-folk." | It seems the weather cleared up on their way to Bywater, so the Hobbits probably had a nice and round gibbous moon over their Bywater bonfire that night. Tolkien noted in Appendix D that afterwards "in the Buckland the Horn of the Mark was blown at sundown every November 2 and bonfires and feastings followed." This was to commemorate this first blowing of the Horn by Merry and the rousing of the Shire-folk. | |
| 🌫 | 1419 Blotmath 3 | 2021 October 23 | 1014 (III:294) | [end of chapter] | "Battle of Bywater, and Passing of Saruman. End of the War of the Ring." | |||
| 🌫 | 1419 Blotmath 4 | 2021 October 24 | VI.9 | [start of chapter] | 1022 (III:302) "...refer to it as Sharkey's End." | "The clearing up" and "labour of repair" after the battle. | ||
| (🌕) | 🌫 | 1419 Blotmath 29 (approximate) |
2021 November 18 | 1022 (III:302) | 1023 (III:303) "...restrain himself from going round constantly to see if anything was happening." | Sam begins the reforestation of the Shire, with the help of Galadriel's gift. | ||
| 🌬 | 1420 Rethe 13 | 2022 March 4 | 1024 (III:304) "Sam stayed at first at the Cottons'..." | But the fit passed... | "Frodo is taken ill (on the anniversary of his poisoning by Shelob)." | |||
| 🌬 | 1420 Rethe 25 | 2022 March 16 | ...as big a family as you could wish for. | Frodo invites Sam and Rosie to move in to Bag End. | ||||
| (🌘) | 🌱 | 1420 Astron 6 | 2022 March 27 | 1023 (III:303) "Spring surpassed his wildest hopes." | 1024 (III:304) 'Ah! that was proper fourteen-twenty, that was!' | "The mallorn flowers in the Party Field." | ||
| 🌼 | 1420 Thrimidge 1 | 2022 April 21 | 1024 (III:304) "And so it was settled." | 1025 (III:305) "He resigned the office of Deputy Mayor at the Free Fair that mid-summer..." | "Samwise marries Rose." | |||
| ☀️ | 1420 Mid-year's Day | 2022 June 21 | 1025 (III:305) | Also in the autumn there appeared a shadow... | "Frodo resigns office of mayor, and Will Whitfoot is restored." | |||
| 🍂 | 1420 Winterfilth 6 | 2022 September 27 | Two years before on that day it was dark in the dell under Weathertop. | "Frodo is again ill." | ||||
| 🌬 | 1421 Rethe 13 | 2023 March 5 | The first of Sam and Rosie's children was born... | "Frodo is again ill." | ||||
| 🌬 | 1421 Rethe 25 | 2023 March 17 | 1026 (III:306) | Little Elanor was nearly six months old... | "Birth of Elanor the Fair, daughter of Samwise." | |||
| 🍇 | 1421 Halimath 15 | 2023 September 6 | In the next day or two... | Frodo and Sam begin to prepare to depart Bag End for Bilbo's 131st birthday. | This date is quoted in William Cloud Hicklin's The Chronology of The Lord of the Rings (p.66), which is a publication (with analysis and notes) of Tolkien's Time-Scheme for LOTR: Marquette MSS 4/2/18. | |||
| 🍇 | 1421 Halimath 17 (approximate) |
2023 September 8 | 1027 (III:307) "On September the twenty-first..." | Frodo gives Sam his keys and the Red Book. | ||||
| 🍇 | 1421 Halimath 21 | 2023 September 12 | 1027 (III:307) | 1028? (III:307) "They camped in the Green Hills, and on September the twenty-second..." | "Frodo and Samwise set out from Hobbiton." "It was a fair golden morning". | |||
| 🌘 | 🍇 | 1421 Halimath 22 | 2023 September 13 | 1028? (III:307) | 1030 (III:310) "...and so they rode down at last to Mithlond..." | "They meet the Last Riding of the Keepers of the Rings in Woody End." | Since the new moon was the next day, there wouldn't have been a moon in the night sky on this evening, but there would be a waxing crescent before the party for a few evenings just before they arrived at the Grey Havens. | |
| (🌒) | 🍇 | 1421 Halimath 29 | 2023 September 20 | 1030 (III:310) | 1031 (III:311) "At last they rode over the downs and took the East Road..." | "They come to the Grey Havens. Frodo and Bilbo depart over Sea with the Three Keepers. The end of the Third Age." | ||
| 🍂 | 1421 Winterfilth 6 | 2023 September 27 | 1031 (III:311) | [end of book] | "Samwise returns to Bag End." |