Goblet
Copyright Information: 'Goblet'. Photographer: Julianna Cook. Medium: Clay. Date Created: November 22nd, 2024. License: May not be reproduced without permission of this page's creator.
This hand-crafted, ceramic goblet was originally molded in Bree, a small town located East of the Shire. The goblet passed down through generations of the Baggins’ family and was used to enjoy many beverages, but mainly to hold wine, a family favourite in the Baggins’ household. Its stout shape allowed for an appropriate portion for times when the Hobbits wanted a small night-cap.
Identification:
- Goblet
- Ceramic
- Date of Manufacture: Third Age
- Place of Manufacture: Bree
- Artifact #: 3146
Owner:
- Linda Proudfoot
- Donated to the Mathom House
It is common knowledge that Hobbits enjoy their creature comforts and often their time is spent with friends and family, feasting and drinking. Hobbits commonly partake in six meals throughout their day (LOTR prologue); Breakfast, Second Breakfast, Elevenses, Luncheon, Afternoon Tea, Dinner, and Supper. Their meal times take up the majority of their day and alcohol is often served during their evening meals, Dinner and Supper, whereas coffee is the common beverage enjoyed in the mornings, followed by tea in the afternoon. As a staple of their culture, Hobbits often host dinners and parties where plates, cups, mugs, and goblets would be needed to serve their guests. As we can see in “A long expected party” in The Fellowship of the Ring when Bilbo hosts his birthday party and caters to over 100 guests (28). While not all parties would serve this large a number of people, smaller dinner parties would still require many accommodations for eating. As we see in The Hobbit, Bilbo hosts 13 dwarves and Gandalf, all eating and drinking from his stores (15). It was common for a household to have many glasses to accommodate their party guests, and goblets such as the one donated to the Mathom House by Linda Proudfoot is an important artifact into Hobbits’ lifestyle and drinking habits. The goblet allows us to see the common alcohol enjoyed by Hobbits, and while many preferred ale or beer as their drink of choice, as we can see by the amount of mugs and pitchers within the Mathom House, the goblet tells us that wine was another staple at meal times.
The goblet, crafted sometime in the Third Age was originally acquired by Gerontius” The Old” Took on a trip to Bree and passed to his daughter Belladonna Baggins nee Took, who gifted it to her husband Bungo Baggins’ sister, Linda (Baggins) Proudfoot (Baggins Family). The goblet, like many artifacts passed throughout generations in the Shire, was gifted to Linda Proudfoot at one of Belladonna’s birthdays. The goblet was crafted in a small shop in Bree, formed with clay, glazed and fired and sold in a set of 6, designed for dinner parties. After many years of accumulation, the Baggins’ had a collection of approximately 32 goblets and started gifting them to family members in order to de-clutter their cabinets. The goblet in question holds an appropriate amount of wine and was often used in the Proudfoot household for post-dinner drinks or a nightcap. The Proudfoot’s held onto the goblet for a number of years until new, more decorative goblets were gifted to them and Linda decided to donate this particular one to the Mathom House for safe-keeping. As a gift from her sister-in-law, she could not give it away to anyone, and so it was donated to the Mathom House. The Took family was known for their adventurous nature and owning a piece purchased by “Old Took” himself was a great honour, even if it had only been purchased a small distance away in Bree.
Goblets were a common entity in the Shire for holding various beverages, most commonly for spirits and wine, whereas ale was served in mugs. The Baggins’ choice of wine in the Shire was the brand “Old Winyard”, as we can see in The Fellowship of the Ring when Bilbo gifts a few bottles to Rorirack Brandybuck as a parting gift when he left Bag-End (37). Many bottles of this wine were laid down by Mungo Baggins, Linda Proudfoot’s brother and Bilbo’s father and kept in the Bag-End cellar. Linda, although taking Bodo Proudfoot’s last name, kept some of her family traditions around and preferred wine over ale, unlike her husband. Wines from “Old Winyard” originated from the Southfarthing of the Shire in Middle-Earth and were often quite strong (37). It was custom to serve wine in a goblet or glass. While there were few bottles left in the Shire and in Bag End, the Proudfoots had one or two themselves which were served on special occasions. More casual dinners they drank other, more local and economically friendly wines.
Tolkien, J. R. R. The Lord of the Rings. HarperCollins, 1991.
Tolkien, J.R.R. The Hobbit. HarperCollins, 1991.