Learn Tarot · The Suits in Depth · Lesson 14 of 25

Pentacles in depth: the suit of Earth

All fourteen Pentacles, from the garden gate of the Ace to the legacy of the Ten and the four Earth courts, with their scenes, titles and decans.

The suit at a glance

Pentacles are Earth: the body, money, work, craft, home, health and time. They describe what we can touch and what lasts. The Golden Dawn set them in Assiah, the material world, where everything that began as will, feeling and plan finally takes form. In the Marseille decks the suit is Coins.

The numbered Pentacles run through the earth signs: Twos to Fours through Capricorn, structure and ambition; Fives to Sevens through Taurus, resources, comfort and patience; Eights to Tens through Virgo, skill, care and the harvest. The Ace is the Root of the Powers of Earth.

Earth's gift is reliability and its shadow is inertia and grasping. It is the slowest suit: things in Pentacles grow at the pace of seasons.

Ace to Three: something real begins

• Ace of Pentacles, Root of the Powers of Earth. A hand from a cloud holds a pentacle over a garden of lilies, and a gap in the hedge opens onto a path toward the mountains. A tangible opportunity: a job, money, a home, a healthier body. Reversed: an opportunity missed, scarcity thinking.
• Two of Pentacles, Lord of Harmonious Change (Jupiter in Capricorn, 0° to 10°). A young man dances while juggling two pentacles bound by an endless loop, ships riding high waves behind him. Juggling, adaptability, keeping things in motion. Reversed: overwhelm, dropped balls.
• Three of Pentacles, Lord of Material Works (Mars in Capricorn, 10° to 20°). A stonemason works in a church while a monk and a figure holding plans consult with him. Teamwork, craftsmanship, skill recognized. Reversed: poor teamwork, sloppy work.

Four to Six: holding, losing, sharing

• Four of Pentacles, Lord of Earthly Power (Sun in Capricorn, 20° to 30°). A crowned figure clutches one pentacle to his chest, balances one on his crown and keeps two under his feet, a city behind him. Security and saving, or possessiveness. Reversed: greed, or loosening your grip.
• Five of Pentacles, Lord of Material Trouble (Mercury in Taurus, 0° to 10°). Two ragged figures, one on crutches, pass through snow beneath a lit church window. Hardship, financial or physical worry, feeling left out in the cold. Reversed: accepting help, turning the corner.
• Six of Pentacles, Lord of Material Success (Moon in Taurus, 10° to 20°). A merchant holding scales gives coins to two kneeling figures. Generosity, giving and receiving, and the question of who holds the scales. Reversed: strings attached, debt, one-sided giving.

Seven to Ten: patience, craft, comfort, legacy

• Seven of Pentacles, Lord of Success Unfulfilled (Saturn in Taurus, 20° to 30°). A young man leans on his hoe and looks at seven pentacles growing on a bush. Patient assessment, slow growth, waiting for the harvest. Reversed: impatience, effort without return.
• Eight of Pentacles, Lord of Prudence (Sun in Virgo, 0° to 10°). A craftsman carves pentacles at his bench and hangs up the finished ones. Diligence, skill built by practice. Reversed: perfectionism, or cutting corners.
• Nine of Pentacles, Lord of Material Gain (Venus in Virgo, 10° to 20°). A woman stands in a vineyard with a hooded falcon on her gloved hand. Self-sufficiency, earned comfort, refinement. Reversed: overwork, or comfort that has become lonely.
• Ten of Pentacles, Lord of Wealth (Mercury in Virgo, 20° to 30°). Under an archway an old man sits with his dogs while a couple and a child stand nearby; the ten pentacles are laid out in the shape of the Tree of Life. Legacy, family, security across generations. Reversed: family disputes, wealth that does not last.

The Earth court

• Page of Pentacles, Princess of the Echoing Hills (Earth of Earth). In a flowering field a youth gazes at a pentacle held up in both hands. A student, a new skill, a practical plan beginning. Reversed: procrastination, short-term thinking.
• Knight of Pentacles, Prince of the Chariot of Earth (Air of Earth). A rider sits still on a heavy horse before ploughed fields. Reliability, routine, steady progress. Reversed: a rut, inertia, all work.
• Queen of Pentacles, Queen of the Thrones of Earth (Water of Earth). She holds a pentacle in her lap under a bower of roses, a rabbit in the corner. Practical nurture, a comfortable home, groundedness. Reversed: self-neglect, work and home out of balance.
• King of Pentacles, Lord of the Wide and Fertile Land (Fire of Earth). His throne is carved with bulls and his robe with grapes, a castle behind him. Material mastery, business success, a reliable provider. Reversed: materialism, stubbornness, status for its own sake.

Reading Pentacles in a spread

Many Pentacles bring the matter down to earth: money, work, health, home, the body, time. Book T read a run of them as business, money and possessions. They are often the answer to a question that seems to be about something else: the relationship question that turns out to be about where to live, or the career question that is really about rest.

Pentacles also talk about time. The Seven asks for patience, the Eight for practice, the Ten for generations. When they appear, ask what a slow and steady version of the next step would look like.

Try it

Lay out the Four, Six and Nine of Pentacles, three different ways of having enough. Write which one is closest to how you treat money right now, and which you would like to be closer to.

Next lesson: Reading the Marseille pips