Tolkien's Priceless Fan Letters Fetch Over £100K at Auction!

A remarkable collection of books, letters, and notes that tell the story of a friendship between JRR Tolkien, the famous author of The Lord of the Rings, and one of his fans, Eileen Elgar, has been sold at auction for more than one hundred thousand pounds. Eileen Elgar, who was profoundly deaf, lived in Bournemouth, a town in the south of England. She lived near the Hotel Miramar, where Tolkien and his wife would spend their holidays every year. In the 1960s, Eileen became fascinated by Tolkien's books and decided to write to him with her questions. Tolkien, who lived in Oxford, replied to her letter, and this started a friendship that lasted for several years.

The auction, held at Sotheby's in London, included several important items. One of the most notable was a letter from Tolkien to Eileen in which he mentioned the death of his friend and fellow author, CS Lewis. This letter, along with a signed copy of The Adventures of Tom Bombadil, was sold for more than twenty thousand pounds. The entire collection, which included items from 1961 to 1964, sold for a total of one hundred and three thousand, six hundred and eighty pounds, including the seller's premium. This was more than double what experts had estimated before the sale. Will Passey, a specialist at Sotheby's, said that the letter was very moving and showed the strength of the friendship between Tolkien and Eileen. He also mentioned that while many of Tolkien's letters have been published, these particular ones had not been seen before.

Eileen Elgar's family described her as having a very rich imagination and a fascination with ancient civilizations. Her granddaughter, Helen Dutfield, explained that Eileen started writing to Tolkien because she was so interested in his books and had many questions. Helen said that Eileen kept talking to her mother about the books, and her mother, who was not interested in them, suggested that Eileen write to the author. That is how the friendship began. Because Eileen never learned to read lips, she and Tolkien communicated by writing notes to each other whenever he visited her home in Bournemouth. The story of Eileen and Tolkien is a touching example of how books and stories can connect people, even if they have different backgrounds or face challenges like deafness. The letters and books that were sold at the auction are now valued by collectors who appreciate both Tolkien's work and the unique friendship he shared with Eileen.