Knight of Pentacles
The Knight of Pentacles is the second court card of the Pentacles suit. It is associated with method, responsibility, and steady progress toward material goals.
Last reviewed: 2026-07-18
Historical fact
In the Rider-Waite-Smith deck (1909), the Knight of Pentacles shows a knight sitting still, mounted on a heavy, motionless horse, in a plowed field, holding a pentacle and gazing steadily at it. Like the other court cards, human figures already appeared in earlier versions of the card, but in a more generic form; the specific rural setting and the horse's static posture are details introduced by Pamela Colman Smith in 1909, visually reinforcing the idea of steadiness.
Interpretation — Rider-Waite-Smith / Golden Dawn
In the Rider-Waite-Smith / Golden Dawn tradition, the Knight of Pentacles represents a methodical, responsible, hardworking approach — slow but steady progress toward a material goal, with patience and caution. In less favorable readings, it can indicate excessive routine, stubbornness, or stagnation. Reversed, it commonly reinforces this negative reading: genuine stagnation, procrastination, or obstinate resistance to change.
Interpretation — Thoth (Aleister Crowley)
In the Thoth deck, the equivalent of the Rider-Waite-Smith Knight is the Prince of Disks, associated with the element 'Air of Earth' — a combination that joins the suit's practicality with a more restless intellectual energy, resulting in a more active figure than the Rider-Waite-Smith Knight's static one.
This section presents one tradition's interpretation, not a verifiable fact.
Frequently asked questions
- What does the Knight of Pentacles mean in Tarot?
- It represents a methodical, responsible approach, with slow but steady progress toward a material goal — patience and caution rather than speed.
- Why is the Knight of Pentacles' horse standing still, unlike the other Knights in the deck?
- Across the four Knights of the Rider-Waite-Smith deck, the horse's motion reflects the suit's element. The Pentacles Knight (Earth) is shown standing still or moving very slowly, in contrast to the Swords Knight (Air), shown at full gallop — a visual choice by Pamela Colman Smith to symbolize the differing qualities of each element.
- Does the Thoth Prince correspond to the Rider-Waite-Smith Knight or King?
- To the Knight. Crowley's hierarchy reorganizes the four court cards as Princess, Prince, Queen and Knight — with the Prince functioning as the equivalent of the Rider-Waite-Smith Knight, while the Thoth Knight is the equivalent of the King.
Sources
- Michael Dummett. The Game of Tarot: From Ferrara to Salt Lake City (1980).
- Arthur Edward Waite. The Pictorial Key to the Tarot (1910).
- Aleister Crowley. The Book of Thoth (1944).
- Stuart R. Kaplan. The Encyclopedia of Tarot (1978).