East of the Sun, West of the Moon Business Card Case
A highly symbolic illustration of the Norwegian fairytale, “East of the Sun, West of the Moon”. In the center the heroine, dressed in a Viking inspired gown, wanders through the snow searching for her lost love. The silver circle around her has eight arrow-type things sticking out of it, these represent the eight directions on the Vegvísir (aka Viking Compass). The outer circle of runes also goes with this symbol. The Vegvísir was used as a spell for guidance and protection, particularly during travel, so I thought it was perfect to use here, and it is also the reason I made this illustration a circle. If you look closely at the carding combs, the complete Vegvísir is painted on the back of them too (just without the circle of runes). The next ring shows important characters and objects from the story, including the golden apple, carding combs and spinning wheel; the sun and the moon, Sol and Mani (who are female and male, respectively, in Norse Mythology); the White Bear; the candle, and the nightshirt with three drops of tallow on it; the Troll Princess; and the Four Winds. The Four Winds here are represented as the four dwarves, Norðri, Suðri, Austri and Vestri, who appear in the Prose Edda. They represent the four cardinal directions, and are said to hold up the heavenly dome which was created from the skull of the jötunn Ymir. They are also believed to be linked to the four stags of the World Tree, Yggdrasil (who, in turn, are said to represent the four elements, the four seasons, or the phases of the Moon). These four dwarves, and the cardinal directions, each have a color associated with them, which I have incorporated as the colors of the hats they wear.
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