Abby Epplett, Historian

Today, I am using my creative liberties to share a scene not appearing in the book that establishes the musical motif representing Frodo and Sam together. In my introduction to this theme, I combine the sound of the serinette with the whistling loved by hobbits along with exploring one interpretation of their relationship: that of a master and his disciple or acolyte.

When Bilbo left Bag End after his Long-Expected Party, he wore a traveling outfit that he had assembled during his adventure with Thorin and company many years earlier. The base of this outfit was heavily worn hobbit-clothes, which I have designed to look similar to a late 18 th century costume previously described in “Characters: Bilbo & Frodo Baggins” . The outer layer was a cloak and hood, common clothing for dwarf-men who liked to travel. The cloak and hood were “rather too large” for Bilbo, presumably because although he was nearly the same height as dwarves, he had less muscle mass and a narrower build.