Golden Cimaruta Altar Card/Reference Guide

Our Golden Cimaruta altar card features an illustration drawn by hand by one of your local tricksters at the Trickster’s Apothecary. The front illustration depicts the pendant of our Golden Cimaruta rosary necklace, with each charm hanging in its place from the branching rue. The back features small illustrations of each symbol in the necklace, including the red coral and Nazar eye beads in the chain. Our Golden Cimaruta is inspired by the traditional Cimaruta, an Italian folk magic charm that has been in use in various forms since the Bronze Age, where a simplified version was used by the Etruscans. The Cimaruta includes a sprig of rue, with each branching segment ending in a manu figa (a protective hand gesture) or a hand that holds a symbolic item. The Cimaruta wards off il malocchio (the evil eye) and is usually made from silver for a lunar association; ours is made with gold-tone metals, tying into the Etruscan bronze versions. Each version of the Cimaruta can include different co