Nan Curunír

Nan Curunír, the Wizard's Vale, is the deep, sheltered valley at the southern end of the Misty Mountains that contains the fortress of Isengard and the tower of Orthanc. Once a pleasant and fertile land, it was transformed by Saruman into a polluted industrial wasteland, and later became the site of the Ents' devastating flood that drowned the valley and destroyed Saruman's power.

Geography and Original Character

Nan Curunír lay in a long cleft at the end of the mountains, open only to the south. The river Isen flowed through it, fed by many springs and lesser streams among the rain-washed hills. In earlier days, all about it had lain a pleasant, fertile land with acres tilled by the slaves of Saruman. The valley was sheltered and had once been fair and green, but it became a wilderness of weeds and thorns, with brambles trailing on the ground and clambering over bush and bank, making shaggy caves where small beasts housed. No trees grew there; among the rank grasses could still be seen the burned and axe-hewn stumps of ancient groves. It was a sad country, silent but for the stony noise of quick waters, with smokes and steams drifting in sullen clouds and lurking in the hollows.

Saruman's Industrial Transformation

Under Saruman's dominion, the valley was filled with pits and forges. Wolves and orcs were housed in Isengard, for Saruman was mustering a great force on his own account, in rivalry of Sauron and not in his service. Over all his works a dark smoke hung and wrapped itself about the sides of Orthanc. The valley became a place of ceaseless industrial labour, with iron wheels revolving endlessly and hammers thudding. At night, plumes of vapour steamed from the vents, lit from beneath with red light, or blue, or venomous green. The once-green valley was now a realm of smoke and machinery, a testament to Saruman's corrupted ambition.

The Ents' Flood and Destruction

The Ents, roused by Saruman's destruction of the trees, marched on Isengard and broke the dams, pouring all the gathered waters through a gap in the northern wall down into the valley. The Isen was sent back into its old course, and the valley became a steaming lake. The waters filled all the plain, drowning the pits and forges, and the tower of Orthanc stood like an island in the midst of a great pool. The Ents' work was thorough: they dug great pits and trenches, making great pools and dams, gathering all the waters of the Isen and every other spring and stream that they could find. The valley was transformed from a place of industry into a waterlogged ruin, a fitting end for Saruman's domain.

Aftermath and Legacy

After the destruction, the Ents took over the management of Isengard. The stone-circle was thrown down and removed, and the land within was made into a garden filled with orchards and trees, with a stream running through it. In the midst of all there was a lake of clear water, and out of it the Tower of Orthanc rose still, tall and impregnable, its black rock mirrored in the pool. The valley was renamed the Treegarth of Orthanc, and the Ents kept watch over it. The transformation from a polluted industrial wasteland to a garden of orchards and trees marked the final defeat of Saruman's ambition and the restoration of the land to a more natural state, though the shadow of what had been done there lingered.