So, Justice is complete! I admit I’ve been dancing around this card for a little bit; its centerpiece is a genuine Nile crocodile skull, carefully sourced from a highly regarded taxidermy supplier. It’s not the absolute most expensive skull out there, but it’s also not the easiest to get, and I really didn’t want to screw this one up. Not that I couldn’t have repurposed it for another art project if I had; nothing goes to waste here. Still, I really like the spirit of this one, and it’s like it was made for this piece.

Now, anyone familiar with Egyptian mythology will immediately get the symbolism of the piece: the crocodile-headed goddess, Ammit, waits patiently to be fed the hearts of those deemed too impure to pass into the afterlife. The lone feather on the chain represents the feather that the hearts are weighed against. Ammit isn’t good or evil, nor does she do the judging herself–she’s just here for the food. In the same way, crocodiles don’t deliberately pick out prey based on any moral qualities; they just go for whatever wildebeest or zebra gets too close to the water and isn’t paying attention. Justice is (ideally) impartial, though for those embroiled in legal or other re-balancing situations it can be a harrowing, even traumatic experience.

Why Justice and not Judgement? Judgement has an overlay of forgiveness and moving on; the penance has been done, and though there may be a few more amends to make, the person has accepted their mistakes and the consequences and is ready to grow from them. Justice is earlier in the process, the rude awakening, the initial “Hey, you screwed up, you know that?” I have a different critter in mind for Justice, though you’ll have to wait to see what it is.

I do have to admit this is my favorite piece that I’ve completed so far. I have 69 left to go, so surely there’ll be others I like at least as much, but this one’s going to be a standout for me.