I’ve been watching onstage performances of The Nutcracker since I was a kid. I’ve noticed that sometimes the Mouse/Rat King is represented as having multiple faces. Why is this?
At a guess, it’s because a “Rat King” is the name for several rats tangled inseparably together by their tails. These are apparently sometimes found in rat’s nests, and are reputed to have magical powers, I believe.
Should have done this earlier, but here’s an informative link