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Home of Middle Earth celebrated New Zealand Post are to release a lavish selection of stamps, miniature sheets, postcards and a booklet on 7th July to mark the country’s contribution to the Lord of the Rings movies.  Who can forget the scene where Arwen summoned a great flood to prevent the darkly malevolent Black Riders from crossing the Ford of Rivendell - and claiming the Ring for their master, Sauron? In reality, the Ford is the Shotover River, deep in Skippers Canyon near Queenstown - once the most prolific of the local goldfields and now a popular visitor destination. Meanwhile, you'll find the horses' track to the river on the banks of the Arrow River, only minutes away from the historic gold-mining village of Arrowtown. South of Rivendell/Mt Olympus - 90c  In the South Island's remote and spectacular Kahurangi National Park, a local helicopter pilot spotted an ideal site for the rough country south of Rivendell. Several months later, the cast and crew arrived to film the Fellowship seeking shelter from Suruman's 'crebain' (black crows) under the rocky outcrops of Mount Olympus. Sprouting from the side of the mountain, these rocks have twisted and cracked into surreal column-like shapes, stark pillars that add to the area's mystically magical air. Edoras/Erewhon - $1.50  Further south, and within deep valleys hidden near Mount Sunday in the towering Southern Alps, the Rings team created the Rohirrim city of Edoras and the Golden Hall, home of King Theoden. In this rocky, weather-beaten terrain, the crew spent 11 months constructing the elaborate set for the capital city of Rohan, the land of fabled horses and valiant warriors. The magnificent edifice attracted curious, camera-bearing visitors for many weekends, only too happy to make the journey from Christchurch over the flat Canterbury Plains to this elusive realm of snow-capped peaks. Mordor/Tongariro - $2.00  The Great Battle of the Last Alliance, marking the end of the Second Age of Middle-earth, was filmed in the starkly dramatic Tongariro National Park - home to Mount Ruapehu, the highest mountain in the North Island. The landscape of blasted volcanic rock, steep bluffs and ash at Iwikau Village was the perfect location for Mount Doom, the epicentre of evil, home to the dark Lord Sauron and the place where the One Ring was first forged. Miniature Sheet  All eight stamps feature on the Home of Middle-earth miniature sheet, together with a stunningly evocative image of the mighty warrior Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen) and Legolas (Orlando Bloom), prince of the Elven Kingdom of Mirkwood. The two fight with passion and bravery, playing vital roles in the battles that determine the fate of Middle-earth. Gummed stamp sheets Gummed stamps will be available in sheets of 50 - each sheet containing 25 se-tenant pairs of one value Four Self-Adhesive stamps The 45c and 90c self-adhesive stamps will also be available in booklets of 10 stamps, sheets of 50 x 90c stamps, sheets of 100 x 45c stamps and a carton containing 100 x 45c stamps. Self-adhesive Stamp Booklet The booklet of self-adhesive stamps comprises 10 miniature pieces of cinematic history - six 45c Ford of Bruinen/Skippers Canyon and four 90c South of Rivendell/Mt Olympus stamps - neatly packaged and presented with a photograph of three of the movie heroes. Stamp Dispenser The dispenser contains 100 45c Ford of Bruinen/Skippers Canyon stamps (50 of each design) Self-adhesive Stamp Sheets The 45c self-adhesive sheet contains 100 45c Ford of Bruinen/Skippers Canyon stamps (50 of each design), the 90c self-adhesive sheet contains 50 90c South of Rivendell/Mt Olympus stamps (25 of each design) First Day Covers Two FDC's will be available, one includes the 8 gummed stamps whilst the other consists of the 4 self-adhesive stamps Presentation Pack This pack comes complete with a gummed first day cover, souvenir miniature sheet and self-adhesive stamp booklet complimented with interesting information about each stamp. Maximum (Post) Cards The The Lord of the Rings - New Zealand Home of Middle-earth stamps are further enhanced with an attractive set of four Maximum Cards. Giant-sized images of the movie scenes from the Home of Middle-earth collection dominate the four maximum cards - while their 'real life' counterparts remind us of the power of movie-making in transforming often well known landscapes into fictional masterpieces.
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