♑ Capricorn · 10 to 20 degrees
The second decan of Capricorn
Capricorn with Mars, which is exalted in this sign: effort that produces something.
At a glance
| Degrees | 10 to 20 degrees of Capricorn |
|---|---|
| Face ruler (Chaldean) | Mars |
| Decanate ruler (modern) | Taurus (ruler: Venus) |
| Golden Dawn card | Three of Pentacles |
| Element and modality | earth, cardinal |
Mars is exalted in Capricorn and this face is read as the most effective combination of drive and structure in the zodiac: force applied patiently, at a target, for years.
Associated with skilled collaboration and craft recognised, which is the corresponding Three of Pentacles.
Two systems, two answers
There are two decan rulership systems in circulation and they give different rulers for the same ten degrees. The older face system runs the seven classical planets in Chaldean order around the whole zodiac, and gives this decan to Mars. The modern decanate system gives each decan to one of the three signs of its own element, here Taurus.
Neither is presented here as the correct one. The tarot attributions follow the face system, most popular modern astrology follows the decanate system, and knowing which one a source is using explains most of the apparent contradictions you will find elsewhere.
What Mars means →The tarot connection
The Golden Dawn mapped the 36 decans onto the 36 minor arcana pips, two through ten. This decan is the Three of Pentacles, which is why that card carries Mars and Capricorn as its attributions in any Golden Dawn-derived deck.
The pips run by modality rather than in zodiacal order: the cardinal sign of each element takes two to four, the fixed sign five to seven, and the mutable sign eight to ten. It is the detail most often got wrong, including by us until a test caught it.
Three of Pentacles on Memento Arcana →Which decan are you?
Your decan is decided by the degree of your Sun, not by the date alone, and the chart gives you the degree of every planet as well.
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