J.R.R. Tolkien Day Jan 3, 2026

Our picture of the day takes us to the Swiss village of Lauterbrunnen, where the Staubbach Falls shimmers in the distance beyond a quiet alpine valley. This is the landscape a young traveller, J.R.R. Tolkien, crossed during a hiking trip in 1911, long before he became the storyteller behind "The Lord of the Rings" and "The Hobbit." Its soaring cliffs, silver waterfalls and crisp mountain air left a lasting impression and are believed to have inspired his vision of Rivendell, the elven refuge hidden deep in Middle-earth.

© pongnathee kluaythong/Getty Images

palette

Today in History

Who’s snoozing?
Jan 3, 2024Virupaksha temple, Hampi, Karnataka
Jan 3, 2025Happy Birthday, J.R.R. Tolkien!

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Mar 26, 2024Vinh Hy Bay, Vietnam
Jan 5, 2026A herd of impalas, Londolozi Game Reserve, South Africa
Oct 2, 2024Gandhi Jayanti
True masters of the jungle
Twinkle twinkle, little bugs
Sep 24, 2023World Rivers Day
Oct 10, 2025Fiji Day
Nov 6, 2023Lago Pehoé, Torres del Paine National Park, Chile
Frosty Finland
Jan 1, 2024Happy New Year!
Nature’s art installation
Oct 8, 2023World Octopus Day
Aug 23, 2023Cenotaphs, Orchha, Madhya Pradesh
America’s backyard
Feb 16, 2025Happy World Whale Day!
Oct 16, 2025Eurasian lynx
The Jewel of Hampi
This island is more than a mile high
Happy New Year’s from down under
Oct 10, 2024Ancient town of Sorano, Tuscany, Italy
Dec 16, 2024Salzburg, Austria
Spring is coming
Oct 12, 2023Old barn and canola field, Palouse region, Idaho
Jan 5, 2024International Ice and Snow Festival, Harbin, China
A church atop a hill
Mar 29, 2025Superbloom in Carrizo Plain National Monument, California, United States
One on land, a million in space
Oct 7, 2024The Elbphilharmonie concert hall in Hamburg, Germany
Apr 18, 2024International Day for Monuments and Sites
Jun 18, 2025Asian swallowtail butterfly on a red spider lily