The Guardian of The Gates
The Guardian of the Gates is an important character in the Oz books of L. Frank Baum. He is never known by any other name, but he is depicted as a singular character who lives in a small room, based on its description significantly larger than a standard guardhouse, in the wall of the Emerald City. In The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and The Marvelous Land of Oz, his function is to tie green spectacles around the heads of all visitors to the Emerald City, on the grounds that the glittering rays of the City would cause blindness. These are locked onto all Ozians' and visitors' heads, and the Guardian has the only key.
