Pip Cards

Pip cards are the forty Minor Arcana cards running from Ace to Ten in each suit, excluding the court figures. In historical decks such as the Marseille they show only the number of suit symbols, so they are read by combining the meaning of the number with that of the element: Five introduces conflict, Six harmony, Nine culmination. The Rider-Waite-Smith deck illustrated them with full scenes and shifted reading toward the image. Understanding the numerical logic makes it possible to read any deck, illustrated or not, and to see why the Five of Pentacles and the Five of Swords share a common root of loss.