Sztar
This is possibly my favorite Queen of Swords in any deck I've ever seen.
The Queen sits in an icy cavern with icicles dangling over her head. She's wearing a white fur robe and a blue gown adorned with waxing and waning moon symbols. On her lap, she holds a crystal ball, which also represents the full moon. On her shoulder is the owl of Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom and the patron goddess of Athens. I mention Athens because I was puzzling over the wolves. In general, wolves symbolize intelligence, among other things, but there aren't any northern goddesses (i.e., goddesses associated with cold climates) that are associated with wolves that I'm aware of. (I could be wrong about that.) Therefore, with the Athena connection, the wolves reminded me of Athen's Mount Lycabettus--the refuge of wolves. The mountain is an impressive sight in the middle of the city, almost regal, which gives it a protective quality, like it's protecting its citizens, enveloping them--similar to the way the wolves appear to be protecting the woman on the card. Perhaps that's a stretch, but considering the possibility that she is associated with Athena, the connection makes sense to me. At the same time, white wolves are associated with colder climates, such as the one depicted on the card. I suppose the goddess is a universal symbol and has taken many forms throughout time and place. So who knows... I welcome others interpretations/associations.
As for the card's meaning, the Queen of Swords represents the watery (i.e., intuitive) aspect of air (i.e., intelligence). The Queen of Swords is an intelligent woman, but pure reason and intelligence can be a bit cold--a bit distant... To be truly wise you have to use both reason, represented by the sword, and intuition, represented by the crystal ball. Where reason fails or when you've come to the end of your conscious reasoning, intuition bridges that gap.
The Queen sits in an icy cavern with icicles dangling over her head. She's wearing a white fur robe and a blue gown adorned with waxing and waning moon symbols. On her lap, she holds a crystal ball, which also represents the full moon. On her shoulder is the owl of Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom and the patron goddess of Athens. I mention Athens because I was puzzling over the wolves. In general, wolves symbolize intelligence, among other things, but there aren't any northern goddesses (i.e., goddesses associated with cold climates) that are associated with wolves that I'm aware of. (I could be wrong about that.) Therefore, with the Athena connection, the wolves reminded me of Athen's Mount Lycabettus--the refuge of wolves. The mountain is an impressive sight in the middle of the city, almost regal, which gives it a protective quality, like it's protecting its citizens, enveloping them--similar to the way the wolves appear to be protecting the woman on the card. Perhaps that's a stretch, but considering the possibility that she is associated with Athena, the connection makes sense to me. At the same time, white wolves are associated with colder climates, such as the one depicted on the card. I suppose the goddess is a universal symbol and has taken many forms throughout time and place. So who knows... I welcome others interpretations/associations.
As for the card's meaning, the Queen of Swords represents the watery (i.e., intuitive) aspect of air (i.e., intelligence). The Queen of Swords is an intelligent woman, but pure reason and intelligence can be a bit cold--a bit distant... To be truly wise you have to use both reason, represented by the sword, and intuition, represented by the crystal ball. Where reason fails or when you've come to the end of your conscious reasoning, intuition bridges that gap.