If you've read George R. R. Martin's "A Song of Ice and Fire" series, you'll know what the following picture represents, a behind-the-scenes image taken of a pivotal scene in the upcoming fourth season of "Game of Thrones."

Courtesy of Nick de Semlyen of Empire Magazine, WinterIsComing.net received the photo depicting a large group of men dressed in furs, smiling for the camera while filming something that looks to be happening at The Wall, which will likely involve actor Kit Harrington (Jon Snow), though he is not pictured.

The image is from episode nine of season four, directed by Neil Marshall, and fans have so far expressed enthusiasm at his return to the show to direct this important sequence.

Marshall also directed another pivotal ninth episode, "Blackwater" in season 2, which was written by Martin himself and won two Creative Arts Emmy Awards for Sound Mixing and Sound Editing in 2012, as well as the prestigious 2013 Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form.

Episode nine is not the last episode of season 4, but the penultimate one, as HBO clarified earlier this year, as the season will conclude with episode 10. Filming for the fourth season is nearly complete, and soon enough, fans can expect a series of promos and trailers for the highly anticipated new set of episodes, in a season that's been promised to be more bloody, brutal and intense than ever before.

Speaking of intensity, Daenerys Targaryen's dragons have a big role to play this upcoming season, as a SFX team used 400 liters of gasoline to create their massive fire effects during filming back in July. As Daenerys's dragons grow stronger and larger, perhaps she'll have an even better shot at taking back her coveted throne.

If you haven't read the books and don't want to be spoiled, however, make sure not to read the spoilers in the comment section of WinterIsComing, or anything spoiler-related until season 4 airs this spring. 

via WinterIsComing.net, Twitter