File:Miriam Ellis - Bilbo's Favorite Walks.jpg

Come into the breakfast room at Bag End and peer over Bilbo's shoulder as he is making the famous map on which he marked his favorite walks around the Shire in special red ink. It's a lovely early afternoon in late spring, and Bilbo has fortified himself with a great mug of tea and a nice piece of toast and jam, but he's become so absorbed in his project that he scarcely notices the telltale thrush who has hopped in at the window in search of crumbs.

Hobbits are keenly observant of the natural world, as is evidenced by their writings that we think of as J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, which are filled with countless passages describing trees, rivers, lakes, flowers, wildlife, and so much more. Bilbo would have known so much about the landscape and life of the four farthings from his many walks. In fact, he has painted a tiny figure of himself setting out from The Hill. A travelling dwarf is near the capitol, Michel Delving, while a tarrying elf is in the eaves of the Woody End. Every spot on the map would have been filled with Bilbo's experiences and memories.

In the little jug on the table, each of the flowers has a special meaning. Bachelor's buttons represent Bilbo's chosen lifestyle. Daisies are reminiscent of his riddling game beneath the mountains, and snapdragons foreshadow his encounter with Smaug. Meanwhile, the poppies are my symbol for J.R.R. Tolkien due to his experiences in the Great War, while the white cow parsley symbolizes Edith Bratt Tolkien, who once danced among such flowers.

Bilbo has splurged on an especially large sheet of handmade paper for this delightful project. He has made his own watercolors out of flowers and leaves, and doubtless his ink would have been made of walnut husks and other local, natural ingredients.