Where did Shelob live before Sauron built his dark tower?
Shelob lived on the borders of Mordor in a deep tunnel called Torech Ungol below Cirith Ungol. Her lair was located high in the Ephel Dúath mountains where she wove webs of shadow.
Questions about Shelob
Short answers, pulled from the story.
How did Sam defeat Shelob in The Lord of the Rings?
Sam used Sting to thrust the sword into Shelob's body while the Phial of Galadriel blinded her with pure light. She fled into the darkness of her lair after being impaled by the bitter spike of the blade.
What is the origin of the name Shelob according to J.R.R. Tolkien?
J.R.R. Tolkien combined the words she and lob to create the name Shelob. Lob is an archaic English word for spider derived from Old English loppe or spider.
Who are the scholars that analyze Shelob as a symbol of monstrous maternity?
Scholars Zoë Jaques, Brenda Partridge, and Jane Chance describe Shelob as embodying monstrous maternity and sexual symbolism. Daniel Timmons wrote in Mythlore in 2001 that reading this episode as sexually violent likely reveals more about critics than Tolkien himself.
When did Peter Jackson delay Shelob's appearance until the third movie The Return of the King?
Peter Jackson delayed Shelob's appearance until the third movie The Return of the King. Her design was based on the New Zealand tunnel-web spider which Jackson personally dislikes.