Jupiter in Cancer Talismanic Letterpress & Linocut Prints

We are pleased to present the premiere offering of devotional and talismanic prints from Idola Stellarum.

This summer, we had the opportunity to adopt a small letterpress studio, and as the exaltation of Jupiter waxed toward his degree of exaltation, Idola Stellarum embarked on a new enterprise of magical-celestial printing. In a week of ritual and devotional fervor, supported by much effort in the lead-up, this effort, spearheaded by Pallas K. Augustine, resulted in a series of devotional and talismanic Jupiter prints made during Magnanimous, Commanding, Sceptered Jove’s movement through his degree of exaltation.

Crafted from high-quality flax/cotton handmade paper and professional printing and relief ink, these prints feature a talismanic image from Picatrix Book II, Chapter 10, ritually carved (see below for more details) and the larger prints also feature the Orphic Hymn to Jupiter, typeset by hand during Jupiter hours prior to the printing. 

We didn’t anticipate the prints coming out well enough to offer as part of a collection as they are experimental and new, but as a culmination of a lifetime of skill development and a huge dose of Jupiter magic, they turned out gorgeous and we are proud to present them as the premiere of print offerings from Idola Stellarum.

(NOTE: If these prints are sold out or out of your price range, there are smaller unframed prints of the hymn available here.)

From Pallas:

“Many folks familiar with my work know I was raised in a house of art and scholarship, but perhaps lesser known is how practical, hands-on, and crafty my upbringing was, as well. My father had me on a bandsaw helping with carpentry projects as soon as I could fit the safety glasses and mother had me on her sewing machine as soon as I could reach the hand wheel.

As a Virgo, I have a knack for most handiwork and enjoy learning, but I particularly love working with clay/carving and printing. I was fortunate as a child to learn how to make linocut prints, and get to hang out with professional stampmakers and artists in their studios. This evolved into my own stamping practice, making sigil-type carvings throughout my creative and magical life.

I’ve also always been making books, hence my previous careers in media production and recently publishing The IC with Idola Stellarum. As a kid, I made picture books, then zines as a teenager, and chapbooks as an early adult. My Masters’ degree featured studying medieval manuscripts, scribal methods, and visiting letterpress and printing studios. The last art I released publicly for sale—a very (very) limited edition chapbook with collage, drawings, poetry, and linocut stamped covers—was in May of 2014…the last time Jupiter was at their exaltation degree in Cancer, as Jupiter was when we made these prints.

Thus when a local artist’s letterpress studio came into our lives this summer—complete with a whole collection of book-size type—a lifelong wish came true and the timing with the upcoming Jupiter at Exaltation degree workings was too auspicious to not follow the spirit guidance in crafting these prints. 

Other ancestors to this operation are a gorgeous large-scale Jupiter in Pisces talismanic linocut print by Genie Raftopoulos (Tides of Tethys) we are fortunate keepers of, and the long traditions worldwide of paper talismans, some produced with stamps and woodcuts (including examples recently discussed by Dr. Ali A. Olomi in a lecture on his Patreon, in a meaningful sync that supported this working coming into being).“

While we hesitate to make any major claims as to the effects of these prints as we have only known them a short time compared to the six months or longer we typically test our talismans, we can share that they are definitively vibe-y. They draw the eye and inspire contemplation from anywhere in the room. They make a beautiful altar addition, as well. We haven’t tried sleeping in the same room as them, so your sleepiness or alertness in their presence may vary and is worth experimenting with.

Technical Details

These Jupiter in Cancer prints were created in the early morning of Wednesday, August 13, 2025 between 2:39am and 3:11am EDT.

Essential Features of the Election

For planetary astrological talisman elections, we require that the relevant planet either rises on the Ascendant or culminates on the Midheaven during the relevant planetary hour. This election featured a dignified Jupiter in his sign of exaltation, Cancer, rising on the Ascendant. The working took place while Jupiter was within 5° of the AC, ending before Saturn was within 5° of the MC. Notably, Jupiter was also in his degree of exaltation, in the 15th degree of Cancer (i.e., between 14°00′ and 14°59′). 

Planetary talisman elections also require the Moon to be in sufficiently good condition. In this election, the Moon moving with fast speed and good light in Aries, applying to a square to Jupiter within 3°. Picatrix favors any aspect to a benefic planet, prioritizing the nature of the planet aspected to the geometry of the particular aspect. The Moon’s ruler Mars was, however, in detriment, about which more below.

Since the 1st house signifies the bearer of the talisman, we also look at the condition of the Lord of the Ascendant in planetary elections. Since the Moon rules Cancer, the rising sign, the same considerations apply as in the above paragraph.

Further Magical Factors of the Election

Three factors significantly enhance the magical qualities of this election.

First, as mentioned, Jupiter was in his degree of exaltation. Each planet is exalted within a particular sign, and additionally, each planet has a particular degree at which they are most exalted. In the case of Jupiter, this is the 15th degree of Cancer (i.e., between 14°00′ and 14°59′). Jupiter was therefore the most powerful he could be in the sign of Cancer. Magically, these degrees are privileged with special talismans from the Book of the Treasure of Alexander to be made only while a planet is in their degree of exaltation. Although these prints were not made using the image from the Book of the Treasure of Alexander, the placement of Jupiter in this election was highly auspicious and noteworthy.

Second, having a benefic planet on one of the angles or cardines of the chart fortunates a magical election (see Picatrix Book II, Chapter 3). Moreover, having a benefic planet on the Ascendant or Midheaven also serves to mitigate afflictions of the Moon:

“[L]ook for Jupiter or Venus either in the ascendant or in the tenth place, for so they compensate for the debilities of the Moon.”

—Marsilio Ficino, Three Books on Life, Book III, Ch. VI, p. 271 (tr. Kaske & Clark)

In this election, both Jupiter and Venus were in the first house, doubly fortunating the election.

Third, what’s more, two of the angles hosted Behenian fixed stars: Sirius rose on the Ascendant and Vega was setting on the Descendent during this election. Although neither star is of the nature of Jupiter, and thus the configuration is not as strong as possible, sources in the Islamicate occult sciences valorize having auspicious fixed stars on angles in magical election charts.

Reflection on Weaknesses of the Election

The Saturn-Mars opposition in the 10th and 4th houses adds tension to this election. Picatrix cautions against having malefics on the angles, and the electional window was timed to ensure neither malefic planet was within 5° of an angle during the operation. Having the two benefics in the 1st house mitigates the misfortune of having Mars in exile as the ruler of the Moon.

Ceremonial Details

Materials & Talismanic Image

The paper is flax/cotton from a maker in Maine, beautifully handmade with Spanish flax. The hymn is printed with a professional oil-based printing ink, and the image is printed with a professional relief ink ritually mixed with powdered Greek gum mastic and basil leaf. Flax, mastic, and basil all hold Jovian virtues, amplifying the working.

The final talismanic image in the list of Jupiter talismans in Picatrix instructs the mage to make “the image of a crane…in the hour of Jupiter, with Jupiter exalted” and “by it whatever you wish will be accomplished” (Maslama al-Qurtubi, Picatrix, tr. Greer & Warnock, Book II, Chapter 10). The original image, as many images in Picatrix, is given for stone, and this particular one has a second power “says Hermes,” that “you will see spirits [if you] wash the image in liquid and drink it” (ibid). Obviously, we don’t want to be doing that with paper talismans as they are not stone, and thus the spirit-seeing impacts of this image are not present. This image was chosen because of the gentleness of both the image and the intention, offering a boost to the Jovian support toward wish and accomplishment.

Numerous syncs with cranes happened in the lead-up to us deciding to make these prints, from coming into acquaintance with antique Japanese scrolls while we were moving into our new house to Pallas’ favourite (and only) reality television show having cranes on this season’s wallpaper. As intermediaries between Heaven and Earth, cranes are auspicious symbols of longevity and good fortune in much East Asian art. Cranes exemplify the Jovian virtues of gregariousness, size, they gather to dance and feast, and hold some of the oldest fossil records of living birds. Sandhill cranes specifically can be traced back in North America 2.8 million years ago. They also dance!

NOTE: The sticker with the Idola logo and explanatory text is on the protective cellophane sleeve, not on the back of the prints themselves. Additionally, the foam backing is provided for protection during shipping: the prints are not themselves mounted on the foam backing board.

Ritual Setup

An altar of white and gold was established prior to the working, with our Jovial bronze bull statue featured as the centerpiece under an enormous carved wooden eagle screen that served as the backdrop for the working. Copious candles illuminated the altar, including four ritually consecrated to Jupiter emblazoned with his symbol and seal as well as the sigil and planetary square of his planetary intelligence. Two live basil plants as well as bunches of fresh-cut hydrangeas from our yard served as plant offerings. Generous food offerings including lots of fresh fruit, two golden crowns filled with pistachios and cashews, dried fruit, bread, and more were made to Jupiter, and glasses of wine, honey, olive oil, and spirits rounded out the offerings.

Procedure

The letterpess type was set during multiple Jupiter hours prior to the printing. The hymns are set in Garamond Old Style, Roman and Italics, and Copperplate Gothic Bold. The large hymns were printed with a Kelsey Excelsior 5×8 tabletop letterpress and suffumigated with a housemade Jupiter incense (below), during Jupiter hour on August 12. Carving of the linocut began during the same Jupiter hour, the sigil and glyph completed during the evening Jupiter hour.

A bespoke invocation of Jupiter by many appropriate epithets, his angels and ruhaniyyat, and his planetary intelligence was intoned at the outset of the talismanic operation when the electional window opened.

During the election window of Wednesday, August 13, 2025 between 2:39am and 3:11am EDT, after ritual invocations of Jupiter mentioned above, we mixed the ink, printed the linocut images on both the small and large prints, and each were then prayed over and suffumigated in generous burning of the same Jupiter incense.

Suffumigation

The incense in both stages of printing was prepared the afternoon of Wednesday, January 5, 2022 between 3:04pm and 3:26pm EST according to a traditional recipe from Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa’s Three Books of Occult Philosophy: “For Jupiter take the seeds of ash, lignum aloes, storax, [benzoin], the lazule stone [i.e., lapis lazuli], [and] the tops of the feathers of a peacock.” White ash seeds, storax, and peacock feathers were ritually pulverized during a Jupiter hour prior to the election, and mixed with powdered lignum aloes and benzoin, as well as crushed lapis lazuli and consecrated with a bespoke petition of blessing during the election.