Emerald City

The Emerald City is the fictional capital of the Land of Oz in L. Frank Baum's Oz books, first described in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. According to early books in the series, the Wizard built the city and named it after himself, but later books indicate that he may not have been its original founder, as some structures were there previously.

Related Topics:
Fictional capital - Land of Oz - L. Frank Baum - Oz books - The Wonderful Wizard of Oz - Wizard

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Located in the center of the Land of Oz, the Emerald City is connected to other parts of Oz via the yellow brick road. The Oz books describe the Emerald City as being completely green and comprised of green glass, emeralds, and other jewels. Even the people that live in the Emerald City are described as being green. Everyone in the Emerald City is made to wear green-tinted eyeglasses (in an effort to protect their eyes from the "brightness and glory" of the city), which may explain why everything is described as being green.

Related Topics:
Yellow brick road - Green - Emerald - Eyeglasses

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Baum may have been partly inspired in his creation of the Emerald City by the White City of the World Columbian Exposition, which he visited frequently, having moved to Chicago in anticipation of the event. W. W. Denslow, the illustrator of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, was also familiar with the White City, as he had been hired to sketch and document the exposition for the Chicago Herald; Denslow's illustrations of the Emerald City incorporate elements that may have been inspired by the White City.

Related Topics:
World Columbian Exposition - Chicago - W. W. Denslow - Chicago Herald

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The Emerald City of Oz is the title of the sixth book in the Oz series.

Related Topics:
The Emerald City of Oz - Oz series

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