# Dwarves with blue beards?



## j0n4th4n (Jan 20, 2003)

I haven't got a copy of the hobbit in front of me at the moment but im pretty sure theres mention of a dwarf having a 'blue' beard at the begining of the book. so whats this all about then? did some dwarves have naturally blue beards? or was it dyed? or was it just a way of saying 'grey'?


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## Gothmog (Jan 20, 2003)

> 'I am so sorry to keep you waiting!' he was going to say, when he saw that it was not Gandalf at all. It was a dwarf with a blue beard tucked into a golden belt, and very bright eyes under his dark - green hood. As soon as the door was opened, he pushed inside, just as if he had been expected.


 The Hobbit: An Unexpected Party

I could not find evidence of such colours in LotR. But It is not unlikely that such a people as Dwarves who seem to like to be noticed within their own kin and use Masks in warfare to intimidate their foes would indeed dye their beards and hair for either perpose.


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## Ithrynluin (Jan 21, 2003)

Maybe Dwarves from houses other than that of Durin the Deathless have different hair/beards.
Were all the Dwarves of Thorin's company from Durin's house?
(too lazy to go look myself )


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## Flame of Udûn (Jan 22, 2003)

Maybe blue-grey? Iron-grey?


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## j0n4th4n (Jan 22, 2003)

yes they were all of durins line. all the dwarves named in the histories are of durins apart from the petty dwarves. the other lines are only mentioned collectively, for example in lotr appendix A they helped durins folk.
see the post 'races of the dwarves' in the hall of fire


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## ltas (Jan 24, 2003)

Couldn't very dark black be described as "blue"? Naturally dark hair does have a kind of a blue shade in some light, doesn't it? Hmm.


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## Dáin Ironfoot I (Jan 24, 2003)

Well, I doubt the beard was really blue, I agree more with Itas' statement in that it was a very deep black, which looks blue in certain light. Calling someone's hair blue is also a very descriptive and poetic way to do so, I have seen it many times. For example, take Psylocke from the X-Men. Her hair is drawn purple, yes I know she is a mutant, but she is Japanese. Her hai is black in reality, but they draw it purple to exagerate the blackness of it (I saw that somewhere... ) But that would be cool if Dwarves really had bright blue beards, not to mention psychodellic (like the Lemon Nemoy video)


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## Baranlas (Jan 24, 2003)

well there dwarves not humans so whats to say they couldnt have natural blue beards


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## jallan (Jan 26, 2003)

I once knew a woman with natural green hair.

She had some sort of metabolic problem with copper, and apparently it came out in her hair.


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## 33Peregrin (Feb 1, 2003)

Jallan, that's cool.

Dwarves... I just thought the blue was like a grreyish blue. Kind of like the fur on some dogs. Like the Blue heeler or something.

Same with the yellow beards.


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## Evenstar373 (Feb 23, 2003)

my nabor has a Yorkie Terrer & if a Yorkie is not mixed they will have blue & gold color fur the blue part is like a gry color


iam not so shure about the gold part it might be some other
color


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## Lúthien Séregon (Feb 28, 2003)

I just assumed the beards were dyed blue when I first read The Hobbit.
There are a few inconsistencies between The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings that bugged me for a little while after reading both books...just minor things really, such as the "talking purse" in The Hobbit.



> "Ere, oo are you??"




I couldn't imagine that sort of thing being in LotR, talking purses.


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## Theoden_king (Feb 28, 2003)

The hobbit is really more of a childrens book whereas the lord of the rings is more complex. So silly things are more likely to be found in the hobbit, so it makes little children laugh


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## Ithrynluin (Mar 12, 2003)

> _Originally posted by j0n4th4n _
> *yes they were all of durins line. all the dwarves named in the histories are of durins apart from the petty dwarves. the other lines are only mentioned collectively, for example in lotr appendix A they helped durins folk.
> see the post 'races of the dwarves' in the hall of fire *



I checked, and they were actually NOT all of Durin's line.

From Appendix A from the LOTR:



> * The names of those who were held to be kings of Durin’s Folk, whether in exile or not, are marked so. Of the other companions of Thorin Oakenshield in the journey to Erebor Ori, Nori, and Dori were also of the House of Durin, and more remote kinsmen of Thorin: *Bifur, Bofur, and Bombur were descended from Dwarves of Moria but were not of Durin's line*.



So not all dwarves of Thorin's company were from the same "folk" so that might explain the different colour of beards and such.
But Dwalin, of whom is said that he has a blue beard (In the Hobbit), is actually of Durin's line. Therefore, this still remains a ridlle of some sort.


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## Tinuvien21 (Mar 15, 2003)

*Blue beard*

Actually I think when they say blue, it means gray. Y'know what I mean?


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## Arda's Bane (Mar 18, 2003)

I dont think that much though was put into the discriptions in the hobbit plus the fact that it was written for children. 
Im shure if Tolkien wrote this book after the sucess of the lord of the rings then their would be no mention of blue beards


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## Maerbenn (Mar 18, 2003)

I may add here that one Fangluin Bluebeard is mentioned in 'The Nauglafring' in BoLT 2.


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## jallan (Mar 18, 2003)

There are also the folklore Bluebeards.

Legends apply the name to Gilles de Rais (a 15th century marshal of France) or to Conmor the Accursed (a 6th century Breton chieftain), both infamous for their murders.

Supposedly Gilles de Rais dyed his beard with so dark it seemed almost blue.

In Charles Perrault’s fairy tale about the murderer Bluebeard, the beard color is freakish but natural.

But none of this explain’s why Tolkien applied the color to the beards of his Dwarves on occasion.

But this is perhaps no more unusual than naturally silver-haired elves.


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## elf boy (Mar 19, 2003)

I'm thinking he means a blue tint... mostly grey but enough blue to confuse people


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