In "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," Lucy first sees a lamppost when she enters the forest. It is standing alone among the snow-covered trees of Narnia.
Lucy reaches the forest by walking through the back of an old wardrobe while exploring a country house during World War II. Expecting to find the wardrobe's rear wall, she instead discovers a strange winter landscape. A light in the distance leads her to the lamppost.
The lamppost is the first unmistakable landmark of Narnia and becomes the place where Lucy meets Mr. Tumnus, a faun carrying parcels and an umbrella. Its ordinary appearance makes the setting especially memorable: a familiar object from the human world is unexpectedly rooted in a magical forest.
The lamppost also has a deeper history in C.S. Lewis's Narnia chronology. In "The Magician's Nephew," readers learn how it came to exist in Narnia, linking Lucy's first encounter to the world's creation story.