Description
Blood or red coral is the common name given to Corallium rubrum and some related species of marine coral. The distinguishing feature of precious corals is their durable and intensely colored red or pink skeleton, which is used for making jewelry. Habitat: Red corals grow on rocky seabed with low sedimentation, usually in dark environments – either at depth or in dark caves and crevices. The parent species, C. rubrum (formerly Gorgonia nobilis), is found mainly in the Mediterranean Sea. It grows at depths from 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 depths of -4 to -35 m. 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 glassy sheen. It exhibits a range of warm reddish-pink colors from light pink to dark red; the word coral is also used to describe such colors. This is due to its intense and permanent color and luster. Red coral has a specific gravity of 3.86 and a hardness of 3.5 on the Mohs scale. Due to its softness and opacity, coral is usually shaped into cabochons 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 prized as a substance believed to possess mysterious and sacred properties. Pliny the Elder notes that, before the great demand came from India, the Gauls used it to adorn 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. Belief in coral's potential as a protector persisted for a long time, and even in early 20th-century Italy it was worn as a protection against the evil eye, and by women as a remedy for infertility. TIMMERSGEMS has been sourcing its corals from the largest coral houses in Italy since 1978, and since 2003 also from Taiwan! Facts: 1. In Hindu astrology, red coral is associated with the planet Mars or Graha-Mangala and is used to propitiate Mars. It should 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.
