What's That Thing The King of Pents. Is Using As A Foot Rest?

[lucifall]

I also think it is an armadillo
Here some reasons, why i think this animal also match with the King of Pentacles.

The armadillo has properties very useful for the King of Pentacles:
-good excavators and useful animals because they eat insects. (important for Earth nature, ruled by the King)
-carries weapon equipment on its back. Its strength is part of its body. His security borders form a part of his total being
-The shield works as girds, the sliding plates are the extension of the girded foot of the king of pentacles

Further They can roll themselves up, so no enemy can hurt them. (this also suits the girded king)
But as a King, This King is so strong, that the armadillo can not follow it's nature to roll up....

The virtility of the armadillo is also very wonderfull: the armadillo with 9 bands always bears IDENTICAL quadruplets! ( the 4 bulls?)

In mayan culture the armadillo is one of the four animals which carry the world.

see here a combined picture of a armadillo in art and the one of King of Pentacles:

http://img717.imageshack.us/img717/6...889dc44a51.jpg

They seem to look the same for me (Only the art armarillo has his nose on the ground as it is eating insects)
Do other forum members see this also?

Luci

[Marlo]

Maybe the head of a statue ? There is obviously the shape of an eye, a forehead and the color of this thing is the same as the ground, King's throne and the towers backwards.

Something made in rock, maybe a remnant of a previous king or landlord effigy that shows its glorious and wealthy times and the king of coins made it his.

[BodhiSeed]

I've always thought that it represented some sort of animal, such as a boar. It (in my own interpretation) symbolizes his "dominion" over his earthly kingdom. It has become his footstool.

[gregory]

Looks like a wolf to me: here is a really good scan;

http://www.albideuter.de/html/rw-d-14.html

If you look at the Universal Waite:

http://www.albideuter.de/html/uw-d-14.html
it's even more like a wolf. Also in the Albano Waite...

[Marlo]

Boar, wolf...with no ears ? Both those animals got big ears attached up to the skull. They don't appear there unless they have been cut off.

[Barleywine]

To me it looks simply like a somewhat stylized repetition of the bull's heads on the throne, shown in three-quarter side view. The eye and the plane of the muzzle are about right, as is the tuft of hair between the horns. The angle of the horns is wrong, but I don't think perspective was one of Smith's strong suits. The idea that the King of Pentacles expresses mastery of and dominion over the generative and procreative powers makes the bull a good fit. I can't imagine why an armadillo would figure into the medieval European emphasis that dominates the RWS images, although a wolf or boar might. However, "husbandry" as mentioned in some of the commentary on this card implies lordship over cultivated land and domesticated animals, not directly over the wild kingdom.

[gregory]

I see ears. They might also be horns....

Just went back to look - bull as in the throne is a very good fit.

[Barleywine]

Originally Posted by gregory

I see ears. They might also be horns....

Just went back to look - bull as in the throne is a very good fit.

They do look more like ears in the second image you posted (Albano-Waite?) and the face deviates more from the other bull-head images (kind of squashed-looking), but the signature tuft of hair on the forehead is still there. Maybe its a cow being dominated by the "bull" (King). In the other image they remind me more of horns that aren't drawn in proper perspective.

[kwaw]

ditto with the bull's head