Palmistry and astrology grew up together, and the clearest place to see it is in the mounts. A mount is a raised pad of flesh on the palm, and there are seven, each named for one of the seven classical planets. When an astrologer says Jupiter is strong in your chart and a palmist says your mount of Jupiter is well developed, they are describing the same quality from two directions. This is why a reading that uses both is more convincing than either alone.
A mount is read by its size, firmness and the lines on it. A full, firm mount means the planet's qualities are strong. A flat mount means they are weak or undeveloped. An over-large, soft mount means the qualities have tipped into excess. A mount with a clear vertical line rising through it is the planet at its best; one crossed by a grille of small lines is the planet under strain.
Mount of Jupiter (base of the index finger)
Ambition, leadership, faith and generosity. A full mount of Jupiter belongs to a natural leader, a teacher or someone with strong beliefs; a flat one to someone who lacks confidence or drive. Too large, and it tips into arrogance. This is the finger and mount on which yellow sapphire, Jupiter's stone, is worn, and it is prominent in Sagittarius and Pisces hands.
Mount of Saturn (base of the middle finger)
Seriousness, discipline, solitude and wisdom. A moderate mount of Saturn gives patience and depth; a flat one belongs to someone who avoids responsibility; an over-large one to a person weighed down by duty and prone to gloom. The fate line, when it exists, runs up into this mount. Blue sapphire is worn on this finger, and Capricorn and Aquarius show the mount clearly.
Mount of the Sun, or Apollo (base of the ring finger)
Creativity, warmth, recognition and success in the eyes of others. A good mount of the Sun is found on artists, performers and anyone who draws people to them; a flat one on someone who has not found their gift or hides it. The line of the Sun, running up into the mount, is one of the luckiest marks in the hand. Ruby is worn here, and the mount is prominent in Leo.
Mount of Mercury (base of the little finger)
Speech, wit, commerce and quick thinking. A full mount of Mercury belongs to the talker, the seller, the writer and the doctor; a flat one to someone who finds words difficult. Small vertical lines on this mount are traditionally called healing lines and are found in the hands of carers. Emerald is worn on this finger, and Gemini and Virgo hands show the mount well.
Mount of Venus (base of the thumb)
Love, warmth, physical vitality and the appetite for life, enclosed by the life line. A full, firm mount of Venus is the mark of a warm, generous and affectionate person; a flat one of someone cool or drained; a soft, over-large one of self-indulgence. It is the largest mount in most hands and the one most easily read at a glance. Taurus and Libra, Venus's signs, usually have it well developed, and diamond or opal are its stones.
Mount of the Moon (outer edge, opposite the thumb)
Imagination, intuition, dreams and the pull toward travel and water. A full mount of the Moon belongs to the poet, the traveller and the sensitive; a flat one to a person of little imagination; an over-large, soft one to someone who lives too much in fantasy. The head line slopes toward it in imaginative people, and the travel lines start from it. Pearl and moonstone are its stones, and Cancer and Pisces show it strongly.
The two mounts of Mars
Mars has two places in the palm. Lower Mars sits inside the thumb, between the mount of Jupiter and the mount of Venus, and shows physical courage and the readiness to act. Upper Mars sits on the outer edge of the palm below the mount of Mercury and shows moral courage, endurance and the ability to hold out under pressure. The flat centre of the palm between them is the plain of Mars, and a hollow plain means a person who gives up easily. Aries and Scorpio hands usually show both mounts firm, and bloodstone and red jasper are the traditional Mars stones.
Reading them together
No hand has every mount full, and a hand that did would belong to an impossible person. The reader looks for the two or three that dominate, because those are the planets that run the life. A big Venus and a big Moon make a romantic; a big Jupiter and a big Mars make a commander; a big Saturn and a big Mercury make a scholar. Then the reader checks the person's sign, and is rarely surprised.