Balin's Tomb

"The wise will stay here and hope to rebuild our town..." — Master of Lake-town

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Balin's Tomb was the tomb of Balin, Lord of Moria, after his death in T.A. 2994.

edit] History and Geography

Balin was killed at the hands of Moria orcs in T.A. 2994 in Dimrill Dale. He was promptly buried in a tomb in the center of the Chamber of Mazarbul, Balin's former seat, which itself was located off the north end of the Twenty-first Hall.

The Fellowship of the Ring, journeying through Moria in 3019, found his tomb. A shaft of light from outside of the mountain fell directly onto Balin’s Tomb, though it is not known what the shaft originally lit. The Chamber was the site of a battle between the Fellowship and a group of attacking orcs.

edit] Appearance

The tomb was made of a single oblong block, about two feet high, underneath a large slab of white stone. Runes were cut deeply into the slab:

BALIN

FUNDINUL

UZBADKHAZADDUMU

BALINSONOVFUNDINLORDOFMORIA

Paraphrased, it says "Balin Fundinul Uzbad Khazaddumu - Balin Son of Fundin Lord of Moria”

edit] Rune inscription

The runes carved into Balin’s Tomb were Angerthas Moria, used before the flight of the Dwarves. Balin’s folk would have followed this example in such a circumstance. The top, larger runes (the first three lines) are written in Khuzdul, while the smaller ones of the final line below, were in the Common Speech, written with Angerthas Erebor.

The Dwarves never used their "true" Khuzdul names, not even in inscriptions, but rather their names in a Mannish dialect of the Northmen. Tolkien, having translated all uses of Mannish into modern English and Norse, rendered these names as "Balin" and "Fundin", as he did the other words in the last line of the inscription (see note on English below). The name "Moria" was used, for by the time of the inscription, it had become the accepted name for Khazad-dûm in the Common Speech.

The use of English to represent the Common Speech in primary sources such as the inscription on Balin's Tomb was a result of Tolkien's vision of completely translating all Westron into modern English, even in authentic documentation, although upon reflection Tolkien said that this translation was "an erroneous extension of the general linguistic treatment".[1]

edit] Portrayal in adaptations

2001: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring:

Balin's Tomb is portrayed on film exactly as described in the book. The runes on the tomb are copied verbatim. Grant Major specifically tried to retain the evocative image of the shaft of light landing directly on Balin's Tomb in the film sequence. In the film, Balin's Tomb is destroyed by the Cave-troll during the Battle of the Chamber of Mazarbul.

2002: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (video game):

The Tomb of Balin is not a straight box, but rather an elevated tomb, held up by four small Dwarf-like statues in the corners.