The ground-state properties of the pentameric Co(II) cluster [Co3W(D2O)(2)(CoW9O34)(2)] (12-) were investigated by combining magnetic susceptibility and low-temperature magnetization measurements with a detailed inelastic neutron scattering (INS) study on a fully deuterated polycrystalline sample of Na-12[Co3W(D2O)(2)(CoW9O34)(2)]. 46D(2)O. The encapsulated magnetic Cos unit consists of three octahedral and two tetrahedral ore-coordinated Co(II) ions. Thus, two different types of exchange interactions are present within this cluster: a ferromagnetic interaction between the octahedral Co(II) ions and an antiferromagnetic interaction between the octahedral and the tetrahedral Co(II) ions. As a result of the single-ion anisotropy of the octahedral Co(II) ions, the appropriate exchange Hamiltonian to describe the ground-state properties of the Co-5 spin cluster is anisotropic and is expressed as (H) over cap = -2 Sigma (i=x,y,z)J(1i)[(S) over cap (1i)(S) over cap (2i) + (S) over cap (2i)(S) over cap (3i)] + J(2i)[(S) over cap (1i)(S) over cap (5i) + (S) over cap (2i)(S) over cap (5i) + (S) over cap (2i)(S) over cap (6i) + (S) over cap (3i)(S) over cap (6i)], where J(1i) are the components of the exchange interaction between the octahedral Co(II) ions and J(2i) are the components of the exchange interaction between the octahedral and tetrahedral Co(II) ions (see Figure Id). The study of the exchange interactions in the two structurally related polyoxoanions [Co-4(H2O)(2)(PW9O34)(2)](10-) and [Co3W(H2O)(2)(ZnW9O34)(2)](12-) allowed an independent determination of the ferromagnetic exchange parameters J(1x) = 0.70 meV, J(1y) = 0.43 meV, and J(1Z) = 1.51 meV (set a) and J(1x) = 1.16 meV, J(1y) = 1.16 meV and J(1z) = 1.73 meV (set b), respectively. Our analysis proved to be much more sensitive to the size and anisotropy of the antiferromagnetic exchange interaction J(2). We demonstrate that this exchange interaction exhibits a rhombic anisotropy with exchange parameters J(2x) = -1.24 meV, J(2y) = -0.53 meV, and J(2z) = - 1.44 meV (set a) or J(1x) = -1.19 meV, J(1y) = -0.53 meV, and J(1z) = -1.44 meV (set b). The two parameter sets reproduce in a satisfactory manner the susceptibility, magnetization, and INS properties of the title compound.