For nearly eighty years, Carthusia has shared with the world – through its collections of fragrances and products for the body and home – the allure and magic that surround the Island of Capri.
Now recognized as a historic brand, Carthusia is an Italian love story, where an unbreakable bond with a one-of-a-kind land intertwines with that of the monks of the Certosa di San Giacomo.
According to a legend passed down through the centuries, Queen Giovanna d’Angiò was expected to visit the monastery. To honor her arrival, the monks gathered the island’s most beautiful flowers. The water in which they were immersed – though the queen reportedly never arrived – began to release the scent of Garofilium silvestre caprese, one of Capri’s most widespread wildflowers. From that moment, the monks began to imagine producing perfumes, a vision that came to life in the 1940s when, with explicit papal authorization, the prior of the Certosa, working with an expert chemist, officially launched production.
Today, Carthusia is carefully preserved by the Ruocco family – Capri entrepreneurs for generations, deeply in love with their land – who acquired the company about twenty years ago with the clear goal of making it a leading expression of Made in Italy in the niche perfumery sector.
“For those of us who grew up on Capri, the Giardini di Augusto meant everything – the first kiss, the first declaration of love…” recalls Silvio Ruocco, the company’s CEO. “Living surrounded by those flowers was enchanting.”
Today, the world’s smallest perfume laboratory is located just steps from the Giardini di Augusto, in the very place where the first perfume shop opened. Within its original wood-paneled interiors, a large window allows visitors to observe some stages of the production and packaging of fragrances and other products.
Carthusia’s authenticity is immediately evident. A symbol of tradition and olfactory culture, the brand remains faithful to its founding values. As in the past, every stage of production is carried out by hand, ensuring the use of natural methods and the care of true craftsmanship. From maceration to bottling to packaging, each phase is done in small batches to preserve the artisanal spirit and the quality of the raw materials.
Many of the essences come from Capri’s natural elements – such as wild carnation from Monte Solaro, rosemary, and other Mediterranean flowers and citrus fruits. The connection between fragrance and place is central: Carthusia is not simply a perfume house, but an olfactory evocation of the island in every season. Its emblem – a “floral siren” designed in Art Nouveau style by Mario Laboccetta – visually captures the brand’s mythical and natural spirit.
At the same time, its entrepreneurial vision is clear and ambitious: to tell the world the story of Capri’s magic, where the Mediterranean sets the rhythm of time and nature surrounds the island’s people with its pure, enveloping scents.
Choosing a Carthusia fragrance means embracing a refined yet cosmopolitan Italian style, where meticulous attention to every detail becomes the driving force behind the creation of truly unique essences. The olfactory experience Carthusia offers celebrates the land from which everything begins.
More than just a perfume house, Carthusia is an “olfactory bridge” between the island and those who visit it. Each bottle is conceived as a keepsake – a fragrance that recalls island landscapes, Mediterranean flowers, and sea breezes, designed to evoke not only scents but also emotions and memories.
“Protecting the cultural and natural heritage of a land of which we are merely custodians, sharing our love for it, and teaching future generations the importance of our roots will remain the deepest purpose of the Carthusia project in the years to come,” concludes Virginia Ruocco, the company’s Brand and Marketing Manager.
