Underhill (house)
Underhill was the home of Tom Bombadil and his wife Goldberry. It was a house on the eastern edge of the Old Forest, not far from the Barrow-downs.
Description[edit | edit source]
Underhill was built atop a grassy knoll, under a steep shoulder of bare stone on the westernmost edge of the Barrow-downs. Its location was described as "up, down, under hill."[1]
Little is known about the exterior of the house, except that it had windows and its door had a wide stone threshold. A penthouse with stone walls and flagstone floor was attached to the north end.
The interior had several rooms. The main room was long and low, with a large table of dark polished wood and low rush-seated chairs. It was lit by overhead lamps as well as candles on the table and a wide stone hearth. The house had a kitchen, which was not described. Outside, there was a kitchen-garden that extended from the eastern wall of the house.
When Frodo visited the house, he and his companions stayed in the penthouse, which was connected to the main hall by a short passageway with a sharp turn. The walls of the penthouse were decorated with green hanging mats. It had two windows, one facing east and one west, which were covered by yellow curtains. The east window opened directly onto the kitchen-garden. There were four mattresses on the floor against one wall and a long bench on the opposite.[2]
Name[edit | edit source]
The house of Tom Bombadil is not named in The Lord of the Rings. The name "Underhill" appears only in The Chronology of The Lord of the Rings. Its entry for September 28th reads "Set out from Underhill. Captured by Barrow-wight."[3]
Portrayal in adaptations[edit | edit source]
- 2007: Lord of the Rings Online:
- The House of Tom Bombadil is a round house hidden in the east of the Old Forest.
