JRR Tolkien's original illustrations are on display at the Morgan Library in New York City until May 12. A handful are described online in The Economist article describing the exhibit:
This exhibition is a slightly more compact version of last year's at the Bodleian Library of the University of Oxford, where Tolkien studied and taught, and where the bulk of his archive is stored. It brings together original manuscripts of "The Hobbit", "The Lord of the Rings" and "The Silmarillion" with illustrations and maps that take you right inside his Legendarium. Walking through it, you feel as though you're peering over his shoulder in his study, watching an elvish conjuror at work. In Tolkien's hands, fantasy has never seemed more real.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 15 2019, @04:02PM (1 child)
It's a way to ensure that only those who live in or can travel to big cities maintain their stranglehold on culture. They don't want the unwashed masses to be able to access such information because it helps them maintain their elite and special status.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 15 2019, @05:13PM
a.k.a. the bourgeoisie
(etymologically!)