Tower of Cirith Ungol

The Tower, which boasted a cunning masonry of the Gondorians, was built of dark stone on the mountain slope of the pass Cirith Ungol. It stood tall against the eastern face of the Ephel Dúath. The Tower had three tiers with pointed bastions and a tall round turret overlooking the pass at its top. [1] The lowest tier was surrounded by a thirty-foot-high wall that behaved as an overhanging parapet to prevent intruders from climbing onto the Tower. The highest level of the Tower was an open space, about twenty yards with a low parapet. The gate near the south-eastern side of the lowest tier led to a broad road that went winding down to join the road above the Morgul Pass. The entrance was guarded by two statues on each side, called Watchers. These evil-looking statues within the archway of the Tower's gate were carved out of huge blocks of stone and had three joined bodies, vulture faces, and claw-like hands. The three faces were placed, one staring the way into the Tower, the other way out, and the third looking across the gateway itself. A gate blocking the hidden passage beneath the Tower called the Undergate led into Shelob's Lair. There was a winding staircase on the right side of the Undergate leading to different tiers of the Tower until the roof. A round turret was found on the western part of the roof. There was a massive hallway with several rooms branching off to the Undergate.​

The Tower of Cirith Ungol was constructed by the Men of Gondor at the beginning of the Third Age. It was mainly built to defend Ithilien and prevent any attacks from Sauron. It guarded the pass of Cirith Ungol and was used as a watchtower to monitor Mordor. Just before the fall of Minas Ithil, the Tower came under the control of the Lord of the Ringwraiths.​

During the War of the Ring, the Tower served the Uruk-hai and Orcs as a watchtower to monitor Sauron's forces. On March 13, 3019, the unconscious paralyzed Frodo was captured by Shagrat's orcs and carried into the Undergate of the Tower. When Frodo was searched, the Orcs found the short of Mithril. This led to a conflict between the Gorbag's Orcs of Minas Morgul and the Shagrat's orcs. The fighting grew severe, and many Orcs were killed. This helped Sam to enter the Tower and rescue Frodo. On his way, Sam was stopped by the Two Watchers, stone statues with three vulture face endowed with evil spirits. [2] After finding Frodo in the topmost chamber, Sam gave the One Ring back. Finally, both the hobbits gathered some food and gear from the Tower and left.​

Here there is a set of five adventures involving The Tower of Cirith Ungol and Shelob's Lair. Here a detailed floor plan of the eleven tiers of the Tower, Shelob's lair, and the tunnel leading to a gate in the first tier of the Tower of Cirith Ungol is included, along with a detailed description.​

In this movie, The Tower of Cirith Ungol is built in accordance with its description in the text. The Tower has a turret at its top with a red light and several tiers made of dark stone. The first time the Tower appears in the movie is when Frodo sees the turret at the top of the Tower with a single red light glowing while passing through the Cirith Ungol pass. After that, Sam is shown spying on the Two Watchers at the gate on his way to rescue Frodo.​