A beautiful box set of the best edition of The Lord of the Rings–the Centenary Edition illustrated by Alan Lee–is on sale for a fantastic price at Amazon and Walmart. Published last October with a lofty $325 price tag, The Lord of the Rings Deluxe Illustrated Box Set is discounted to only $135.37. The current price is roughly $1 higher than the all-time low ($134.25). In 2025, the price has generally hovered in the $180-$200 range, and the last discount as good as this one didn’t stick around for long.
The Deluxe Illustrated Box Set is is absolutely stunning. As someone who personally owns this edition of The Lord of the Rings–sadly, I paid considerably more for my copy–I think all big Tolkien fans would love to have this in their collection. So if you have a Lord of the Rings fan on your shopping list, the Deluxe Illustrated Box Set would make for a wonderful gift this holiday.
You can read all about The Lord of the Rings Deluxe Illustrated Box Set below. The store pages at Amazon and Walmart only include one image of the books inside the display case, so I also included some of the gorgeous promotional images from Barnes & Noble’s store page.
We also included a look at the upcoming 2025 edition of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings Illustrated Box Set, which is also illustrated by Alan Lee, and a list of deals on other collectible editions of The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, and Tolkien’s other Middle-earth tales. There are some terrific deals, including a limited-time price cut on the brand-new Great Tales of Middle-earth Box Set.
$135.37 (was $325)
The Lord of the Rings Deluxe Illustrated Box Set is a revamped version of the gorgeous Centenary Edition from 1992. Across the three hardcover volumes–The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King–there are more than 50 new pencil sketches and full-color paintings by beloved Lord of the Rings artist Alan Lee. All told, the box set has 1,332 pages, which makes it longer than most, if not all, editions of LOTR currently in print.
The top and bottom page edges are sprayed dark blue, while the side edges were designed to resemble billowing smoke from Mount Doom’s eruption. Lee created new artwork for the covers, too. Each cover has a framed rectangular drawing in the center. The illustrations are inset on gray cloth board and surrounded by an elegant, silver foil-stamped border. Each book is quarterbound in blue leather, and the pages are sewn into the spine. You can mark your spot using the attached ribbon bookmark.
The silver-foil text along the spine and on the covers was stamped onto each book. The custom display case was constructed from cloth board and features stamped circular emblems designed by Lee. The case has rounded front edges to make it easy to remove each book. With all three books removed, you can peer inside the fully illustrated interior of the case. Lee’s depiction of Mount Doom’s eruption covers every surface inside the lovingly crafted slipcase.
Inside each book, you’ll find a large art card that can be removed and displayed separately. Along with three art cards, you get a pair of foldout maps of Middle-earth drawn by Christopher Tolkien, the author’s literary executor who edited, expanded, and organized many supplementary writings about Middle-earth, including The Silmarillion and Tolkien’s Legendarium, which became the foundation for the massive 12-part series now known as The History of Middle-earth.
2025 Edition: $139.50 (was $150) | 2020 Edition: $72-$126
William Morrow is publishing another Lord of the Rings box set illustrated by Alan Lee on October 14. It’s not nearly as fancy as the three-volume Deluxe Illustrated Box Set, but it comes with a notable addition: The Hobbit, also illustrated by Lee. This four-volume hardcover set features the Centenary Edition of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit’s 60th Anniversary Edition.
The dust jackets and display box have fully illustrated artwork by Alan Lee. Overall, the exterior design aesthetic is similar to the 2024 History of Middle-earth Box Sets and the recently released pair of box sets: Tolkien Myths and Legends and The Great Tales of Middle-earth.
You’d miss out on the exclusive paintings and sketches from the Deluxe Illustrated Box Set as well as premium features like quarterbound blue leather, cloth board covers, the custom case, etc. In return, you’d get The Hobbit with Lee’s wonderful illustrations.
Due to the deal on the Deluxe Illustrated Box Set, you’d actually pay more for this four-volume, $150 collection–unless you bought the 2020 edition.
It’s all a bit confusing, but this box set was originally published in the UK in 2020. The upcoming US edition appears to be the same as the old one. The 2020 version is available to buy from resellers at Amazon and Walmart for far less than $139.50. Strangely enough, Amazon actually has it in stock, too–sold and shipped by Amazon–for $126.67.
You can buy the 2020 set from a third-party seller for $89 at Amazon. Notably, your order will still be shipped directly from Amazon. You can buy the set from a reseller at Walmart for $72, and your order will be shipped from Walmart’s warehouse.
2025 Edition
2020 Edition
William Morrow’s ongoing series of hardcover box sets with decorative slipcases and reversible dust jackets kicked off last year with the publication of four box sets compiling The History of Middle-earth. Although originally a 12-volume series, the new box set series has 15 books and starts with The Silmarillion, which isn’t technically part of The History of Middle-earth–though you should read it before diving into the wide-ranging collection that further demonstrates Tolkien’s mastery of building fantasy worlds. All four History of Middle-earth Box Sets are on sale for huge discounts. Alternatively, the three-volume, 5,440-page Complete History of Middle-earth is on sale for $106 (was $250). All five box sets below include hardcover books and slipcases.
The most recent Tolkien box set edition is a new hardcover collection of The Great Tales of Middle-earth, which are considered the author’s final three novels and were published posthumously from 2007-2018. Released on August 19, this new box set is already on sale for 33% off, dropping the price to $84. It’s worth noting there’s a 2018 hardcover box set edition of The Great Tales of Middle-earth for $50 (was $100). You can also save $55 on Tolkien Myths and Legends, which includes two myths written by Tolkien as well as his personal translations of four epic poems, including Beowulf. The three box sets below include hardcover books and decorative slipcases.
More Tolkien Collector’s Editions & Hardcover Box Sets
We rounded some of the other notable hardcover box sets and collectible editions of Tolkien’s work below. This includes the beautiful Unfinished Tales: 40th Anniversary Collector’s Edition, a slipcased, limited edition of The Silmarillion, and Tolkien’s Collected Poems, which were published in a three-volume set last fall.
For a cheaper Lord of the Rings hardcover box set, we’d recommend the 2024 Collector’s Editions and the vintage set with cover art from the 1988 editions. If you buy the 2024 box set, you can also get matching editions of The Silmarillion and The Hobbit separately.
Tolkien Illustrated Edition Series
The Tolkien Illustrated Editions of LOTR, The Hobbit, and The Silmarillion are probably the most popular hardcover editions of Tolkien’s three best-known works. These are unique because they are illustrated by the author himself. Each one has premium features like sprayed edges with Elvish, Dwarvish, or Tengwar script, gold- and silver-foil trim, stamped cover art, ribbon bookmarks, and two fold-out maps. The Deluxe Special Editions have quarterbound leather spines and cloth board cases. These editions also come with custom slipcases and additional collectible inserts.
If you’re interested in owning collectible editions of Peter Jackson’s adaptation of The Lord of the Rings, all three movies will soon be available as standalone 4K Blu-rays with steelbook cases. The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers launched earlier this year, and The Return of the King’s Steelbook Edition is up for preorder for $30 (was $35) at Walmart.
