King, Suit of PentaclesKing of Pentacles tarot card meaning
Upright and reversedKing of Pentacles in shortIn short
The King of Pentacles is the king of the harvest. He sits on a dark throne carved with bulls' heads, in a robe grown over with grapes and vines, a gold sceptre in one hand and a pentacle in the other. Wealth, security, and success built by practical skill.
- Abundance
- Security
- Success
Piece oneThe castle
Behind the wall at his left rises a castle of grey stone with red and green roofs. Waite leaves it out; his meanings for the king are valour, intelligence, business, mathematical gifts, success in these paths. The castle is that success in stone.
"Valor, intelligence, business, mathematical gifts, and success in these paths."Waite, 1911
Why it is hereThe castle is what his work has built. It stands behind the wall at his side, so the king sits at the edge of his own success. The vines in front of it are what grows; the castle is what lasts. His robe joins the two.
Piece twoThe bull
A bull's head is carved on the side of his throne, and two more top its back. Waite says the bull's head should be noted, a recurrent symbol on the throne. The bull is strong, slow and hard to move, like the earth.
"...the bull's head should be noted as a recurrent symbol on the throne."Waite, 1911
Why it is hereThe bulls tell you what kind of king he is. Strong, slow, rooted in the earth, they sit on the throne he sits on. The vines in front of the throne soften the stone. He rules through patience the way the bull ploughs.
Piece threeThe king
He wears a red hood and a wreath of leaves and red flowers instead of a heavy crown, eyes calm and lowered. Waite says the face is dark, suggesting courage. Ours is pale, with the steady face of a man with nothing to prove.
"The face of this figure is dark, suggesting courage..."Waite, 1911
Why it is hereHe has a wreath where a heavy crown could be, so his rule looks like a harvest. His eyes are calm and lowered. Under the robe of vines a steel boot shows, so the strength is still there. The castle and the bulls back him up.
Piece fourSceptre and pentacle
One hand holds a gold sceptre with a round top; the other rests on a large gold pentacle. Waite says the pentacles carry the pentagram, the four elements in human nature and the way to govern them. He holds his wealth calmly. He rules it.
"The sign of this suit is represented throughout as engraved with the pentigram, typifying the correspondence of the four elements in human nature and that by which they may be governed."Waite, 1911
Why it is hereThe sceptre and the coin give him both rule and wealth. One hand holds the staff of office, the other rests on the coin. He holds them calmly, the bulls behind and the vines over his lap. The castle in the corner shows where they led.
Colour, and where else it appearsEchoes
-
The castle
Grey stone and red roofs on a gold sky, the roofs matching his hood. The Ten of Pentacles has a stone tower and red-roofed houses behind its arch. In the Four of Wands a castle with a red roof stands behind a garland. The King's castle is his.
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The bull
Charcoal stone, softened by red flowers and green vines growing in front. The Emperor has ram heads carved into his grey throne. The World has a bull in one corner, beside a lion. The King's bulls sit at his back and arm.
Also in -
The king
A red hood over a robe so dark it's nearly black, with the vines' greens and purples as his land. The Emperor wears a heavy gold crown and sits in armour, his legs in steel. The King keeps his steel under the robe, one boot showing.
Also in -
Sceptre and pentacle
Bright gold on a near-black robe: the two brightest things on the card. The Emperor holds a gold sceptre and a gold orb. The Queen of Pentacles holds her coin in both hands and looks into it. The King rests his hand on his and looks away.
Colour notes are ours, read from the picture; Waite does not explain the colours.
King of PentaclesUpright
Success built and kept. Waite's meanings: valour, intelligence, business, mathematical gifts, success in these paths. A thriving business, financial security, leadership that is practical and generous.
He did the work of the whole suit and now enjoys the harvest. Manage what you have with a steady hand, and use your success to hold others up.
King of PentaclesReversed
Waite's words: vice, weakness, perversity, peril. Wealth and power get misused, or a strong position proves weak.
Greed, stubbornness, security risked for status. Waite's older meanings call the reversed King an old and vicious man. Look at how you use what you have.
Yes or noYes.
Yes. Success and stability. A solid answer.
King of Pentacles in your lifeIn your life
Love
A stable, generous, protective partner. Love that offers security and a good life.
Work
Success, leadership, a head for business. Grow what you've built.
Money
Wealth and security. Your money works for you; keep managing it well.
Health
Strength and stability. Go easy on rich living. A card can't diagnose you; if something's wrong, see a doctor.
Spirituality
The sacred in the material world: work well done, nature, generosity.
Advice
Be steady, practical, generous. Build something that lasts.
As a person
Successful, reliable, practical. Generous with what he has, calm under pressure.
Past, present, future
Past: years of work that built your security. Present: success and plenty. Future: a stable position you can share.
Written by us, from Waite's meanings and the picture.
Symbols and correspondencesAt a glance
- Suit
- Pentacles
- Element
- Earth
- Golden Dawn
- Air of Earth
- Court
- King
- Upright
- Valor
- Reversed
- Vice
QuestionsCommon questions
Yes. One of the strongest cards for money and work.
A loyal, stable, generous partner. A relationship on solid ground.
Yes, a solid one.
Waite says the bull's head is a recurrent symbol on the throne, worth noting. Ours has bulls on top and on the sides: strength, patience, earth.
A successful, practical man, often a businessman or provider, generous and steady. Waite's older meanings: a rather dark man, a merchant, master, professor.
Waite notes the king's dark face, a sign of courage, and the bull's head on his throne. He says the suit once stood for money, though its meanings lean more to change.
The Pictorial Key to the Tarot, 1911Card meanings and quotes: A. E. Waite, The Pictorial Key to the Tarot, 1911. Element, decan and sephira: the Golden Dawn's Book T. Colours, life situations, yes or no and questions: written by us, from Waite's meanings and the picture.
All 14 Pentacles