<P> In Appendix A, section III, of The Return of the King, dragons are stated to reside in the Withered Heath beyond the Grey Mountains . Smaug is described as "the greatest of the dragons of his day", and was already centuries old at the time he was first recorded . Having heard rumors of the great wealth of the Dwarf - kingdom of Erebor, he "arose and without warning came against King Thrór and descended on the mountain in flames". After driving the Dwarves out of their stronghold, Smaug occupied the interior of the mountain for the next 150 years, guarding a vast hoard of treasure . </P> <P> "The Quest of Erebor", a chapter of Unfinished Tales, recounts how Gandalf realized that Smaug could pose a serious threat if used by Sauron . He therefore agreed to assist a party of Dwarves, led by Thrór's grandson Thorin Oakenshield, who set out to recapture the mountain and kill the dragon . Assuming that Smaug would not recognize the scent of a hobbit, Gandalf also recruits Bilbo Baggins to join the quest, which is the subject of The Hobbit . </P> <P> Upon reaching Erebor, the Dwarves sent Bilbo into Smaug's lair, and he was initially successful in stealing a beautiful golden cup as Smaug slept fitfully . Knowing the contents of the treasure hoard which he had slept upon for centuries to the ounce, Smaug quickly realized the cup's absence upon his awakening and sought for the thief on the Mountain . Unsuccessful, he returned to his hoard to lie in wait . Having been nearly killed in the dragon's search, the Dwarves send Bilbo down the secret tunnel a second time . Smaug sensed Bilbo's presence immediately, even though Bilbo had rendered himself invisible with the One Ring, and accused the Hobbit (correctly) of trying to steal from him . During his discourse with the dragon, Bilbo detected a small bare patch in the jewel - encrusted underbelly of the dragon . When Bilbo narrowly escapes an attack from the dragon and collapses amidst the Dwarves at the entrance to the secret tunnel, a thrush overhears Bilbo's frantic retelling of his interaction with the dragon and learns of the bare patch on Smaug's underside . This becomes important later when Bard the Bowman kills the dragon during the dragon's attack on Laketown by shooting an arrow into this bare patch and piercing the dragon mortally . </P> <P> Tolkien created numerous pencil sketches and two pieces of more detailed artwork portraying Smaug . The latter were a detailed ink and watercolour labelled Conversation with Smaug and a rough coloured pencil and ink sketch entitled Death of Smaug . While neither of these appeared in the original printing of The Hobbit due to cost constraints, both have been included in subsequent editions and Conversation with Smaug has been used extensively . Death of Smaug was used for the cover of an early UK paperback edition of The Hobbit . </P>

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