The Arctic island kingdom of the panserbjorne (armoured bears), a frozen land of ice and rock. Under the usurper king Iofur Raknison, Svalbard has been corrupted - the bears ape human customs and Iofur desires a daemon of his own. Lyra's clever deception helps Iorek Byrnison defeat Iofur and reclaim the throne. Lord Asriel builds his fortress and laboratory on Svalbard, and it is there that he tears open a bridge between worlds.