Goldberry Printable version

She was the mysterious wife of the strange being, Tom Bombadil. The supposed daughter of the river spirit that lived in River Withywindle with her water-spirit mother. When she married her husband, she moved with her husband to the Old forest of Buckland’s edge.

Biography

There is not much known about Goldberry’s nature or her origin but the popular opinion is that she could be the daughter of the spirit in River Withywindle since she was referred to as the child of the river-spirit woman.

History of Goldberry

The earliest mention of Goldberry was at the time that Tom Bombadil trailed Eriador. He had encountered several strange creatures of the valley that included Goldberry but was able to overcome them without an effort, he had only used his voice to make all the creatures he encountered succumb to his authority. Goldberry was so captivated by his merry nature that she held his beard for fun under water-lilies. He was soon released on his command, then he left her, only to return the following day seeking the hands of Goldberry in marriage which he achieved. Tom Bombadil welcomed the Old Forest’s inhabitants for their wedding, and the couples lived happily after.

Goldberry in the Third Age

She dwelled near the Withywindle river with Tom Bombadil during the early periods in the Third Age. The couple met and interacted with Bucklander Hobbits that lived before the founding of the Shire.

Encounter With the Travelling Hobbits

While Frodo embarked on the journey to destroy the ring with his companions they got into trouble with the evil tree called Old Man Willow, and Tom Bombadil saved them. He took them home to his wife as his guest. Tom Bombadil had gone far from Withywindle to help his wife collect the white kind of water lilies when he met the Hobbit and the rest of the travelers. On getting to Tom Bombadil’s home they found his wife on her seat amidst floating water lilies that rose from pottery pots. She was unusual just like her husband.

Goldberry was kind to the Hobbits who were in awe of how graceful she looked and how enchanting her presence felt. She told them things about her mysteriously powerful husband and directed the Hobbits to clean themselves before they can sit to dine with the hosts. On the morning of the following day, Tom Bombadil was having a nice time with the guests, informing them of things that predated the founding of the Shire when Goldberry interrupted and directed them to take their breakfast. Later as the traveling companions departed for Barrow-downs she bade them goodbye.

When the traveling companions got into trouble in Barrow Downs they did as Tom had instructed them and Tom Bombadil came from nowhere to their rescue. He then took a blue stone bearing brooch home as a gift to his lover Goldberry from the Barrow Wights’ hoard.

Goldberry’s Appearance

Goldberry was beautiful, she had long hair that is yellow. She was equally beautiful to hear. It is said that she was young and yet had lived long like the ancient springs. She was likened to the sound of free-flowing water from the brightness of hills to the darkness beneath. The Hobbits travelers were amazed when they encountered her in Tom’s home. She wore a gown as green as reeds in the youngest form, a golden belt, and her gown had dews like silver beads. Her gaze was piercing, she had eyes that were pale blue and impossible to forget.

Nature of Goldberry

Goldberry wasn’t human or elven, she was most likely a spirit from river Withywindle. Her origin is unknown, and she was found by Tom Bombadil in the river during the encounter previously mentioned. She was given the title of The Daughter of the River-woman, [1] which supports the claim that she was a spirit from Old Forest. The long time that she had lived also suggests that she was like her husband, an immortal being. The idea of spirits of nature appearing in human form is common in English folklore. Another popular explanation for the Goldberry character was that she was a water-related Maia, and connected to the Withywindle river. This explanation looks sensible enough but it's not the only one. John Rateliff had suggested that Goldberry could be a part of the earlier beings in the legendarium; they were a category that included spirits, fays, and Maia. What is certain, however, is that the couple of Goldberry and Tom Bombadil are enigmas in Tolkien’s legendarium. They are characters that create space for lots of speculations.

Inspiration for Goldberry

Tolkien himself had described the Goldberry character as a representation of nature’s seasonal changes and her husband the spirit of nature itself. This means Tom and his wife were both spirits of nature. Tolkien centered his characters on myth and ontology of Eurasians: A Mother Goddess to everything that preceded time and manifested in the form of water and river. Tom claimed to be her first offspring, and his wife was the spirit for local water bodies that existed since time became existent. According to Eurasian mythology, water is regarded as a female, and the land masculine. The couple can together serve as the whole of the original Nature that is endless and forever recurring as one season takes over from another.

Portrayal in Adaptations

In the series of the LOTR as aired on British Broadcasting Corporation, BBC, Radio, the wife of Tom Bombadil was likely voiced by the same person that people presumed to have vocalized Galadriel, Nicolette Bernard. In The Perilous Realm radio series, Goldberry was vocalized by the Dublin born actress Sorcha Cusack. The Online game version of LOTR, the LOTRO, used Kath Soucie, the artist that did Phil and Lil in Rugrats. She was the artist that did the vocalization of Goldberry. In the Short film adaptation made by fans of LOTR, the fans from theonering.net, she was portrayed.

Trading Card Game

The Card Game of LOTR [2] published by Decipher Inc. portrayed the wife of Tom Bombadil as Amanda Niel.

References

1. ^The River-daughter.
2. ^The Lord of the Rings Trading Card Game.