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Was the Lonely Mountain in The Hobbit a volcano?

If not, how did the dwarves get enough heat to run the huge forges?

I am asking about the books, not the movies.

Astor Florida
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    Not an answer because I don't have sources available, but I don't recall any indication in the books of dwarves using volcanic heat to run forges. – Deolater Jun 12 '19 at 20:43

4 Answers4

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Speaking as a geologist: The Lonely Mountain is probably an extinct volcano. J. R. R. Tolkien depicted the mountain several times in sketches and watercolors, and in most of them the volcano is steep-sided and conical with a flattish peak. Two of his drawings appear to show a crater at the top:

None of the depictions show any kind of stratigraphic bedding, though it might be hard to see at this scale.

This form is consistent with a stratovolcano having somewhat eroded sides and a crater. Compare Fuji, Vesuvius, Etna, Mt St Helens, and so on. Tolkien would certainly have been familiar with some of these volcanoes in illustrations. However, in Thorin's map, the Lonely Mountain has a sharp peak with no crater, so the evidence is inconsistent. It may be that Tolkien's ideas shifted over time.

Tolkien was unaware of plate tectonic theory when he wrote The Lord of the Rings, for the excellent reason that it did not exist yet, but he evidently made good use of his knowledge of European geography. The tall mountain chains within Middle-earth (Misty Mountains, White Mountains, etc.) are similar to the Alps and Pyrenees that he knew. The mountains that wrap around Mordor are more unusual, but a parallel exists in the Carpathians. A stratovolcano in the middle of a continent is an anomaly, and he probably was aware of that. Usually they occur on the margins of continents, but there are a few exceptional cases such as Kilimanjaro where they occur far inland.

As to the Lonely Mountain's composition, Tolkien mentions that it was rich in ores and gemstones. Fresh volcanic rock itself usually yields neither, but hydrothermal (hot groundwater) circulation in fractures or porous rock (e.g., tuff resulting from ash) can result in deposition of gold, silver, and copper as well as lead and sometimes nickel. Diamonds are a possibility in one kind of volcanic rock, but not in stratovolcanoes, so diamonds would not be expected.

If the Lonely Mountain is not a volcano, then the question of how it obtained its nearly symmetrical form, with a flattish or cratered peak, becomes a problem.

DavidW
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Invisible Trihedron
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    Regarding the inconsistency in the drawings, it's not completely without precedent for a stratovolcano that previously had a sharp-ish peak with a small crater to rather suddenly develop a much more flat peak with an enormous crater. Though, of course, it was not previously completely lacking a crater. – reirab Jun 11 '19 at 21:26
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    In the context of The Hobbit, one shouldn't try to apply logic to what The Lonely Mountain was; it simply was. In the wider context of the history of Middle-Earth as developed after The Hobbit was published (and as it was incorporated into his broader works), it's not much of a stretch to posit that it simply isn't a natural occurrence, and was raised by either Melkor or one of the Valar for some reason or another. – chepner Jun 11 '19 at 21:32
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    (For example, the Misty Mountains were specifically mentioned in the Silmarillion as having been raised by Melkor as a hindrance to Oromë.) – chepner Jun 11 '19 at 21:35
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    I think it's safest to say that Tolkien was not a geologist, and we just have to suspend disbelief in this case. – Spencer Jun 11 '19 at 21:38
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    @reirab: Yes indeed; for example, Mount Shasta is a volcano although the crater is not conspicuous from a distance, and the flanks have been deeply cut by glaciers. The burden of proof, when you see a steep, regularly conical mountain with a crater at the top, is actually on those who say it is not a volcano, because most such mountains are volcanoes. – Invisible Trihedron Jun 11 '19 at 23:44
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    I disagree with the "It is as it is" approach. Tolkien was no geologist, granted, but he was a well educated man who went to some lengths to get his details right. For example, more than fifty pages of The Lord of the Rings contains descriptions of Aragorn tracking other people. Tolkien did not know much about tracking, so he consulted others to find out, with the result that Aragorn's actions, such as circling around to rediscover a lost trail, make perfect sense in the novel and it enriches my reading experience to be aware of that. Similarly for his geography. – Invisible Trihedron Jun 11 '19 at 23:46
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    My (very brief) research suggests that an extinct volcano would not be likely to provide sources of intense heat, so this doesn't quite address the OPs question about the heat source. Can you comment on that? – Harry Johnston Jun 12 '19 at 03:09
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    An inconclusively supported (but tantalizing) idea that would lend additional weight to the theory Erebor was a volcano can be found in an old forum thread here. The OP of that thread presented a rather well-reasoned argument that Tolkien could have plausibly toyed with the idea of the Arkenstone being one of the Silmarils, lost in a crack in the earth's crust in the First Age, only to be found again after the volcanic Erebor had formed over it. – jmbpiano Jun 12 '19 at 03:35
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    @HarryJohnston A long dormant volcano may still have a geologically active magma chamber. Think the Yellowstone caldera for example. It's not erupted in a very long time, but there are a lot of bubbling geothermal pools and geysers (which is probably a factor in why it's not erupting, as there's a pressure relief valve, so to speak). – jwenting Jun 12 '19 at 09:23
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    @jwenting a long-dormant volcano and an extinct volcano are different things. – OrangeDog Jun 12 '19 at 12:07
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    One could also mention the presence of at least one tunnel leading diagonally down from one of the slopes toward the core, which, with some imagination, could be a lava tube. – N. Virgo Jun 12 '19 at 12:23
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    (Personally, I've always thought that the Lonely Mountain is a sort of metaphorical volcano, with the dragon being a mythical representation of geological forces. This rings especially true given the backstory that Smaug had slept for a long time and then suddenly obliterated a town and the surrounding countryside.) – N. Virgo Jun 12 '19 at 12:25
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    As you are a geologist, a point that you would be able to expound on more is that the nature of formation of a mountain - I was under the (potentially erroneous) impression that block, fold or uplifted passive margin mountains all formed mountain ranges (i.e. not "Lonely"), leaving the possibilities of either a Volcano or a Post-Impact uplift in a complex crater resulting from something like a meteor strike? – Chronocidal Jun 12 '19 at 15:42
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    It might be worth noting that an extinct (or just long dormant) volcano doesn't necessarily need to have any kind of a recognizable crater at the summit; something like a partial collapse of the crater wall could easily leave it with a single sharp peak. One real-world example is Mount Erciyes in Turkey, as seen e.g. in this aerial photo. – Ilmari Karonen Jun 12 '19 at 21:07
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    Some good comments above. As to the source of heat for smelting ores, hydrothermal energy would be insufficient, and using magma for heat would be extremely dangerous. (Okay, Tolkien does have Sauron using magma in his forge at Mount Doom, but presumably Sauron also used protective charms to keep the molten rock and gasses off.) The Dwarves mined coal, but in the Blue Mountains; it is not mentioned anywhere else. They could have used wood, as in England (and everywhere else) before the Industrial Revolution. That would presumably have been traded for from Men. – Invisible Trihedron Jun 12 '19 at 21:13
  • @Chronocidal: Yes, tall mountains usually occur in ranges on Earth due to plate-tectonic movements. Most are at present or past plate boundaries. Active volcanoes are common at convergent and divergent plate boundaries, i.e., boundaries where plates are coming together or pulling apart, but not where they are just sliding past each other. Volcanoes that are moved away from these settings may become extinct. – Invisible Trihedron Jun 12 '19 at 21:20
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    There are also volcanoes over hotspots, i.e., rather mysterious places where material wells up from the mantle. These can be in oceanic settings (e.g., Hawaii) or continental settings (e.g., Yellowstone). Where mantle material mixes with continental crust, some rather odd rocks can result, so I would expect the rocks of Lonely Mountain and Mount Doom to have interesting chemistry, rich in Ca, Mg, Na, and K, and often with associated copper, silver, and gold ore. But, offhand, I don't think that Tolkien described rocks in any detail other than color. He knew his trees and butterflies, though. – Invisible Trihedron Jun 12 '19 at 21:27
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    @OrangeDog I know, but many times in the past a volcano was thought to have been extinct because it had never erupted in living memory only to erupt again some time later. Volcanology is not perfect, and was less so in the past. – jwenting Jun 13 '19 at 03:57
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    Mordor isn't all that special, another example would be the many Hercynian formations - it's just that they don't for such rough, tall mountain ranges, mainly because they've already been eroded. Middle Earth is implied to be much younger than Earth (or even modern European geology/geography). – Luaan Jun 13 '19 at 08:55
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    However, in Thorin's map, the Lonely Mountain has a sharp peak with no crater, so the evidence is inconsistent: In-universe map may be wrong, same as our world medieval maps weren't 100% accurate – Kepotx Jun 13 '19 at 15:32
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    One needn't be too concerned with natural explanations for geographical features. The Misty Mountains were a deliberate obstacle raised by Morgoth to hinder the Eldar on the Great Journey, and many features of the landscape can be attributed to the forces unleashed by Morgoth and the Valar during the war that resulted in the ruin of the Two Lamps. – chepner Nov 08 '22 at 14:05
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There is no evidence that the Lonely Mountain is a volcano. The Hobbit repeatedly identifies Smaug as the mountain's sole source of heat and smoke. For instance, there is this conversation between Bilbo and Balin, near the beginning of chapter 11:

“The dragon is still alive and in the halls under the Mountain then — or I imagine so from the smoke," said the hobbit.
“That does not prove it,” said Balin, “though I don’t doubt you are right. But he might be gone away some time, or he might be lying out on the mountain-side keeping watch, and still I expect smokes and steams would come out of the gates...."

As to how the dwarves of Erebor operated their forges, the answer is presumably the same as in real life. When they needed high heat for their smithing work, they used coal. We known that coal-burning forges are used in Middle Earth, from Gandalf's sarcastic comment to Thorin in chapter 1:

"... Just let any one say I chose the wrong man or the wrong house, and you can stop at thirteen and have all the bad luck you like, or go back to digging coal.

Buzz
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    The lonely mountain could be an extinct volcano even if it is not active. – Lexible Jun 11 '19 at 15:01
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    "The Hobbit repeatedly identifies Smaug as the mountain's sole source of heat and smoke": I'd say the passage you've quoted actually implies the opposite. Balin is saying that the smoke doesn't prove the dragon is alive and inside the mountain, and that he'd expect smokes and steams even if Smaug was away. Why? Well, there must be another source, other than Smaug. Otherwise, what he is saying doesn't make much sense. – Fabio says Reinstate Monica Jun 11 '19 at 21:31
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    @Fabio, he means that Smaug makes so much smoke and steam that it would take months or years for it to dissipate. – Harry Johnston Jun 12 '19 at 02:58
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    ... otherwise he'd have said, "The mountain smoked long before Smaug came along" or similar. – Harry Johnston Jun 12 '19 at 03:04
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    @FabioTurati The quote here ends prematurely. The end of the sentance is "[...]still I expect smokes and steams would come out of the gates: all the halls within must be filled with his foul reek." The way the colon is placed strongly implies the smoke not only comes from Smaug, but is literally draconic B.O. so thick as to be visible. Buzz- I'd suggest adding the remainder of the sentence to your quote so this is more apparent. – jmbpiano Jun 12 '19 at 03:46
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As a matter of myth-construction, a mountain that periodically issues smoke and steam (i.e. a volcano) would probably give rise to local legends of occupation of that mountain by an iron-working race and/or some kind of monster that produces smoke. So as a literary or mythopoeiac matter, the Lonely Mountain is probably a volcano.

The other isolated mountain in Tolkien's geography, Mt. Doom, is explicitly a volcano. The difference in their treatment may be a result of the fact that Mt. Doom is much more violently active.

tbrookside
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Using clearly metaphorical language Tolkien describes the Lonely Mountain in volcanic terms.

From The Hobbit, chapter 12, "Inside Information:"

The dwarves were still passing the cup from hand to hand and talking delightedly of the recovery of their treasure, when suddenly a vast rumbling woke in the mountain underneath as if it was an old volcano that had made up its mind to start eruptions once again. The door behind them was pulled nearly to, and blocked from closing with a stone, but up the long tunnel came the dreadful echoes, from far down in the depths, of a bellowing and a trampling that made the ground beneath them tremble.

Lesser son
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