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Chapter Icon

2.7.5: Iconography (What are them icons?)


"I have come here to lick chapter icons and kick ass. And I'm all out of chapter icons." [Joe "Uno" Shaw]

The astute reader may have noticed that the little pictures at the beginning of each chapter are not randomly chosen. Rather, there are loose correlations between the icons and what happens/who we see in the chapter. Note that the correlations are not perfect, and the icons change meaning throughout the course of the series.

The very astute reader may have noticed that the FAQ follows suit, using the various icons from the series to head up the different sections. However, note that some of the icons from the books have been adapted to different purposes in the FAQ, and a few of the icons in the FAQ have been randomly chosen.

Here is a table of the various icons, in order of appearance in the series, descriptions, and what they seem to symbolize. Things labeled "FAQ" are meanings the icons have in the FAQ, but not in the books.

Icon Description Meaning
icon Serpent and Wheel Aes Sedai, Wheel of Time, Ta'veren, the Pattern
icon Ravens Darkfriends, other minions of the DO, or Seanchan
icon Dragon's Fang Early books: Darkfriends, other minions of the DO, or Rand; Later books: Rand, Asha'man
icon Harp Thom Merrilin
icon Leafless tree at night Travelling through woods/at night. FAQ: Ishamael, Moridin
icon Heron-mark sword hilt Rand, blademasters
icon Wooden staff Moiraine. FAQ: Salidar Aes Sedai
icon Flame of Tar Valon Aes Sedai, Saidar
icon Sunburst Whitecloaks
icon Leaves on a vine Nynaeve, Tinkers, Ogier, Loial, Waygates, Green Man
icon Horned skull, trident and a paw Trollocs
icon Wolf Wolfbrother, Perrin
icon Lion Rampant Andor, Elayne
icon Gnarled, withered tree The Blight, FAQ: Shaidar Haran
icon Ruby-and-Snake-Hilted Dagger Shadar Logoth Dagger, Mat, Padan Fain
icon Horn Horn of Valere
icon Portal Stone Portal Stone
icon Rising Sun Cairhien
icon Insect-Like, Horned Helmet Seanchan
icon Large Leaf Waygates, Ogier, Wise women, Tinkers, Nynaeve (Seems to be replacement for the leaves on a vine from TEOTW)
icon Tree with lots of leaves Stedding, Ogier, Loial
icon A'dam Damane
icon Female silhouettes (One Black, One White) Black Ajah, the hunt for them
icon Dice (five) Mat. "(Note the five sixes..Yahtzee!!)" -- Joe Shaw
icon Crescent moon and stars Lanfear. (This one is really noteworthy. This icon appears when we meet the peddlers (aka Lanfear and Asmodean) in the waste. Had I realized it was Lanfear's icon, I would have realized then that one of them was Lanfear disguised. Also the same when she appears to the girls as Else. -- Judy G.)
icon Dream Ring Tel'aran'rhiod
icon Waves A journey over water. FAQ: Ebou Dar
icon Dragon Rand
icon 8-pointed star and gulls Sea Folk
icon Two spears and a shield Aiel
icon Bull with garland of roses Gareth Bryne: the Sign of House Bryne is a bull with a garland of roses around its neck.
icon Elephant Valan Luca's circus
icon Full Aes Sedai symbol of old Rand, the Dragon Reborn-- "under this sign will he conquer"
icon Snakey square Forsaken
icon Falcon Faile
icon Sword crossed with fouled anchor Egeanin, Bayle Domon
icon Flag with hand, oval, and sword Far Madding


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