Yellow sky in tarot

Many of Smith's skies are a flat, bright yellow rather than blue: the Fool, the Magician, the Empress, the Chariot and Strength among them, along with a number of minor cards. Readers take the yellow as full daylight, the sun's energy, consciousness and confidence. Readers notice when the sky changes: grey for neutral or uncertain states, blue for calm or reflective ones, black for the Devil, the Tower and the night of the Nine and Ten of Swords. Compare the sky with the mood of the card.

Cards that show yellow sky

The Fool
The Fool: The sun and yellow sky
A white sun with long rays shines in the top right corner of a bright yellow sky. Waite describes it as a sun that 'knows whence he came, whither he is going'. The yellow ground of the card gives it daylight, optimism and clear air.
The Magician
The Magician: The yellow sky
The background is a plain, bright yellow, the colour of daylight and of the conscious mind. Nothing is hidden behind the Magician: he works in full view, which is part of what separates skill from trickery.
Strength
Strength: The mountain and yellow sky
A blue peak rises in the distance on the left, above green fields and trees, and the whole scene is lit by a flat yellow sky. The mountain suggests a long aim; the yellow gives the card its warmth and openness.
Justice
Justice: The yellow sky above the veil
Above the veil and at the edges a flat yellow shows, the same colour Smith used behind several of the more hopeful or spiritual cards. It hints that a wider light surrounds even this sober, enclosed scene.
Three of Wands
Three of Wands: The yellow sky and sea
Sky and water are both washed in yellow, so that the horizon almost disappears. Yellow skies in this deck tend to mark clarity and optimism; here the whole future seems lit.
Four of Wands
Four of Wands: The yellow sky
The background is a saturated yellow, one of the brightest skies in the deck. Like the yellow skies of the Fool and the Empress, it signals warmth, openness and good feeling.
Nine of Cups
Nine of Cups: The yellow background
The whole field behind the scene is a flat, bright yellow. Like the yellow skies of other Smith cards, it gives the card warmth, optimism and a sense of good fortune.
Seven of Swords
Seven of Swords: The yellow sky
The whole background is bright yellow. In the Smith deck yellow skies often go with daylight clarity and intellect, which gives the scene an oddly open, exposed quality for an act of stealth.
Ten of Swords
Ten of Swords: The yellow dawn
Between the black sky and the water runs a wide band of yellow light. Readers almost always take it as dawn: proof that the night is ending, and that the scene contains a beginning as well as an ending.
Nine of Pentacles
Nine of Pentacles: The yellow sky and trees
A bright yellow sky fills the top of the card, with two leafy trees and low purple hills on the horizon. Smith uses yellow skies for her most contented scenes, and the trees suggest growth that has had time to mature.
Page of Pentacles
Page of Pentacles: The yellow sky
The background is a clear, bright yellow, as on several of Smith's more optimistic cards. It gives the scene a sense of clarity and good prospects.
Knight of Pentacles
Knight of Pentacles: The yellow sky
A clear yellow sky fills the background, with a couple of small trees on the far right. The mood is calm and steady, without the urgency of the other Knights.
Queen of Pentacles
Queen of Pentacles: The yellow sky and blue hills
A warm yellow sky fills the background, with blue hills in the distance on either side of the throne. The landscape is open and peaceful, a fertile place well looked after.
King of Pentacles
King of Pentacles: The yellow sky
The background is a bright yellow sky above the wall, the castle and the greenery. Smith uses yellow skies for her most assured scenes, and here it matches the King's settled, unhurried confidence.