‘Rings of Power’ teases this famous ‘Lord of the Rings’ location

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power’s second season came to an epic conclusion this week. The season ends with the brutal destruction of Eregion. So where will the Elves go next?

Things are certainly looking up for Middle-earth’s Dark Lord, are they not? Sauron finally has his hands on the nine rings, the orcs are at his disposal, and Eregion has well and truly fallen. There was so much death and devastation; it was a tough finale to watch. The handful of Elves who managed to survive Sauron’s wrath have fled, following Commander Elrond and High King Gil-galad to a new, secret, and most importantly, safe, location.

After the fall of Eregion, we don’t exactly see where the Elves go. The audience, much like Galadriel, suddenly ends up in a new valley, disoriented. Upon waking, Galadriel asks, “What is this place?” and Elrond replies, “A sanctuary”—a sanctuary protected by the power of the three Elven rings. The very last shot of the season finale shows the scope of the setting. It depicts a veritable Eden, with a large river cutting through a lush, dense forest that grows upwards onto the mountains on either side.

It is, in fact, the sight of one of Middle-earth’s most notable Elven strongholds.

Rivendell, Middle-earth’s sanctuary

Upon hearing the word “sanctuary,” I instinctively knew this valley would become more than just a rest stop for weary Elves. One location in The Lord of the Rings novels and films is outright described as a sanctuary, and that location was founded and ruled over by one of The Rings of Power’s key characters. We are referring, of course, to Rivendell, otherwise known as Imladris.

Bilbo Baggins, Frodo Baggins, and the other Hobbits all journey to Rivendell in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. It serves as a place of refuge and peace after the Hobbits’ daring escapades beyond the borders of the Shire and is the birthplace of what would later become known as the Fellowship of the Ring.

In popular culture, Rivendell has since grown in popularity amongst readers, who see it as a place to escape the horrors of war. Marjorie Burns wrote in her book, Perilous Realms: Celtic and Norse in Tolkien’s Middle-earth, that to enter Rivendell is a spiritual transition, one in which “the weary adventurer is transported into a haven of Elven hospitality and delight.” Well, the Elves of Eregion certainly require that.

We might see the founding of Rivendell in the next season as, in Tolkien’s works, it was founded after the destruction of Eregion. Here, Elrond will come into his own as a Lord, and, eventually, he will wield one of the rings of power, Vilya, as given to him by Gil-galad. This will allow him to protect his people from darkness in the future. Rivendell is, above all, a symbol of hope, and the show did a good job of revealing its beauty in the final shot of the season.

Right now, the free peoples of Middle-earth need all the hope they can get.