Description
Blood or red coral is the common name given to Corallium rubrum and several related marine coral species.
The distinguishing feature of precious corals is their durable and intensely colored red or pink skeleton,
which is used for jewelry making.
Habitat:
Red corals grow on a rocky seabed with low sedimentation, usually in dark environments – either at depth
or in dark caves and crevices. The native species, C. rubrum (formerly Gorgonia nobilis), is found primarily in
the Mediterranean Sea. It grows at a depth of 10 to 300 meters below sea level, although the shallower of these
habitats have been largely depleted by harvesting. In the underwater caves of Alghero, Sardinia (the "Riviera del Corallo"),
it grows at a depth of -4 to -35 meters. The same species is also found at Atlantic locations near the Strait of
Gibraltar and on the Cape Verde Islands. Other Corallium species are native to the western Pacific Ocean, particularly around Japan
(Corallium japonicum) and Taiwan, occurring at depths of 350–1,500 meters below sea level in areas with strong currents.
Coral as a gemstone
The hard skeleton of red coral branches is naturally matte but can be polished to a vitreous luster. It displays a range of
warm reddish-pink colors from light pink to dark red; the word coral is also used to name such colors.
Due to its intense and permanent coloring and luster,
red coral has a relative density of 3.86 and a hardness of 3.5 on the Mohs scale.
Because of its softness and opacity, coral is usually cabochon-shaped or used to make beads.
Coral Trade
At the beginning of the 1st millennium, there was significant trade in coral between the Mediterranean and India,
where it was highly valued as a substance believed to endow mysterious and sacred properties.
Pliny the Elder notes that, before the great demand came from India, the Gauls used it for the decoration of their weapons and helmets.
Among the Romans, branches of coral were hung around the necks of children to protect them from danger, and coral
was attributed many medicinal virtues. The belief in coral's potential as a protector persisted for a long time
, and even in the early 20th century in Italy, it was worn as protection against the evil eye and by women as a
remedy for infertility. TIMMERSGEMS has been purchasing its corals from the largest coral houses in Italy since 1978, and since 2003 also in Taiwan!
Facts
1. In Hindu astrology, red coral is associated with the planet Mars or Graha-Mangala and is used to appease Mars.
It must be worn on the ring finger.
2. A branch of red coral plays an important role in the civic coat of arms of the city of Alghero, Italy.
3. Used in Marken, Middelburg, and Volendam as costume jewelry.
