World of A Song of Ice and Fire
The fictional world in which the A Song of Ice and Fire novels by George R. R. Martin take place is divided into several continents, known collectively as The Known World.
The Wall in the Ice and Fire series was inspired by Hadrian's Wall in the North of England.
Season 2 of the TV adaptation featured scenes set north of the Wall that were filmed on the Vatnajökull glacier in Iceland.
For the TV adaptation, the harbour of Ballintoy in Northern Ireland was redressed as the port of Pyke.
For the TV adaptation, images of the Greek rock formations of Meteora were used for the composite views of the Vale.
A Song of Ice and Fire is a series of epic fantasy novels by the American novelist and screenwriter George R. R. Martin. He began writing the first volume, A Game of Thrones, in 1991, publishing it in 1996. Martin originally envisioned the series as a trilogy but has released five out of a planned seven volumes. The fifth and most recent entry in the series, A Dance with Dragons, was published in 2011. Martin continues to write the sixth novel, titled The Winds of Winter. A seventh novel, A Dream of Spring, is planned to follow.
A Song of Ice and Fire book collection box set cover
George R. R. Martin at Archipelacon in Mariehamn, Åland, 2015
A Song of Ice and Fire series was partly inspired by the Wars of the Roses, a series of dynastic civil wars for the throne of England. This painting by Richard Burchett portrays Edward IV demanding that his defeated enemies be taken from Tewkesbury Abbey.
Although involving dragons and sorcery, A Song of Ice and Fire series de-emphasizes magic as compared to many other epic fantasy works (emblem of J. Allen St. John's 1905 fantasy work The Face in the Pool).
