Amon Hen
Amon Hen (
Sindarin for 'Hill of the Eye') is the name of a fictional hill in
J. R. R. Tolkien's
fantasy world of
Middle-earth.
It was constructed in the early days of Gondor, perhaps even as early as the second age; its other names in
Westron were The Hill of Sight and the Hill of the Eye.
Aragorn says that it and its counterpart hills were made "...in the days of the great kings" (The Fellowship of the Ring II 9) but this is open to interpretation.
The hill towers above the western banks of the
Anduin, and it is one of the 3 peaks at the southern end of the long lake
Nen Hithoel above the
Falls of Rauros on the
Anduin River. The
Seat of Seeing was built there, close to the earlier northern borders of
Gondor, serving as a watchtower for the borders of
Gondor.
The
Company of the Ring passed by Amon Hen after having travelled down the Anduin, and it was here that the fellowship broke up as a result of
Boromir's death, with
Frodo and
Sam crossing the river on their way east to Mordor. Frodo sits on the Seat of Seeing and immediately he is able to see telescopically for hundreds of miles in all directions because of its magical properties.
The other two hills built with Amon Hen were named
Amon Lhaw, the Hill of the Ear, and
Tol Brandir, an insurmountable island located between the two hills.