In PoME, "Last writings", note 14, CT writes "[Mordor] Maybe already an Elvish name for that region, because its volcano Orodruin and its eruptions - which were not made by Sauron but were a relic of the devastating works of Melkor in the long first age.)". It is not clear if these are the words of JRRT. If not, on what ground did CT make this statement Anyway, the passage seems to imply that? Mordor was created in the early wars and definitely not later than the Battle of Powers. It don't believe in the Fonstad's Helcar theory, because the sea of Rhun already existed during the Great Journey of the Elves. The Ambarkanta map was made long before Tolkien invented Mordor and cannot be taken to seriously.
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