This movie makes extensive use of actual Norse mythology (on which the "Thor" comic was based): The war between the Asgardians and the Jotunns was based on the Aesir-Vanir War (the Jotunns were, in fact, a non-hostile, non-antagonistic race). Odin's (Sir Anthony Hopkins') ravens Huginn (thought) and Muninn (memory), who gather information in Midgard (Earth) and relay it to Odin, are sitting on his throne during Thor's coronation ceremony. The symbol seen at the weapons vault, and on Mjölnir, is the triquetra, a religious symbol. Its ancestor is the valknut, a German symbol associated with Odin. The Bifrost, originally thought of as the rainbow by the Norse, is seen as a beam of rainbow light. Heimdall's golden observatory is based on the Himinbjorg, Heimdall's home. When Odin appears in Jotunheim, he is riding his eight-legged horse Sleipnir. A Jotun calls Thor (Chris Hemsworth) a "little Princess"; once, Thor's hammer was stolen and he dressed up as the love goddess Freya to retrieve it. Fandral (Josh Dallas) and Thor each describe Loki (Tom Hiddleston) as mischievous and a talented liar, an homage to Loki's titles as the god of mischief and lies. Thor asks for a cat to ride. Thor's mother Frigga (Rene Russo) has her chariot pulled by two large blue cats. Thor shows Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) a drawing of crossroads with nine orbs in it, his perception and representation of Yggdrasil, a great tree around which the nine worlds are tethered, making up the universe.