Red Coral Research Papers - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Since ancient times, red coral has been one of the most appreciated original items exported from the Mediterranean to India and East Asia, along the circuits of the silk and spice trade routes. Nevertheless, due to its rarity, as well as... more

Since ancient times, red coral has been one of the most appreciated original items exported from the Mediterranean to India and East Asia, along the circuits of the silk and spice trade routes. Nevertheless, due to its rarity, as well as to a paucity or a lack of records, studies seem often to neglect this product on the move from the West to the East. Focusing mostly on some accounts from antiquity to early modern times, this paper gathers information and mentions from several sort of archival, artistic, and literary sources, in order to explain why coral was appreciated, how it was acknowledged, traded and employed by different civilizations, especially in East Asia.

Beads and other ornamental items made of precious red coral have been utilized by various cultures worldwide for thousands of years. Depending on its properties and market context, this highly valued material has meant different things to... more

Beads and other ornamental items made of precious red coral have been utilized by various cultures worldwide for thousands of years. Depending on its properties and market context, this highly valued material has meant different things to different peoples through time. The current industry-based in Torre del Greco in southern Italy-reflects past traditions but also incorporates new ideas into the production of beads and jewelry for the three principal world markets: fashion, ethnic, and tourist. These reflect the historic trade and use of red coral beads in several West African, European, and American cultural settings. This article describes the Torrese coral industry, revealing how the different beads are manufactured and marketed, and also delves into the cultural significance of precious coral over time.

During the Central European Iron Age, more specifically between 600 and 100 BC, red precious corals (Corallium rubrum) became very popular in many regions, often associated with the so-called (early) Celts. Red corals are ideally suited... more

During the Central European Iron Age, more specifically between 600 and 100 BC, red precious corals (Corallium rubrum) became very popular in many regions, often associated with the so-called (early) Celts. Red corals are ideally suited to investigate several key questions of Iron Age research, like trade patterns or social and economic structures. While it is fairly easy to distinguish modern C. rubrum from bone, ivory or shells, archaeologists are confronted with ancient, hence altered, artifacts. Due to ageing processes, archaeological corals lose their intensive red color and shiny surface and can easily be confused with these other light colored materials. We propose a non-destructive multi-stage approach to identify archaeological corals amongst other biominerals used as ornament during the central European Iron Age with emphasis on optical examination and mobile Raman spectroscopy. Our investigations suggest that the noticeably high amount of misidentifications or at least uncertain material declarations existing in museums or even in the literature (around 15%) could be overcome by the proposed approach. Furthermore, the range of different materials is higher than previously expected in archaeological research. This finding has implications for contemporary concepts of social structures and distribution networks during the Iron Age.

The red coral Corallium rubrum is a habitat-forming species with a prominent and structural role in mesophotic habitats, which sustains biodiversity hotspots. This precious coral is threatened by both over-exploitation and temperature... more

The red coral Corallium rubrum is a habitat-forming species with a prominent and structural role in mesophotic habitats, which sustains biodiversity hotspots. This precious coral is threatened by both over-exploitation and temperature driven mass mortality events. We report here that biocalcification, growth rates and polyps' (feeding) activity of Corallium rubrum are significantly reduced at pCO2 scenarios predicted for the end of this century (0.2 pH decrease). Since C. rubrum is a long-living species (>200 years), our results suggest that ocean acidification predicted for 2100 will significantly increases the risk of extinction of present populations. Given the functional role of these corals in the mesophotic zone, we predict that ocean acidification might have cascading effects on the functioning of these habitats worldwide.

Forthcoming in eds. Kathleen Davidson and Molly Duggins, Sea Currents: The commodification of the Ocean World in Nineteenth Century Art, Science and Culture. Part of the Bloomsbury series, Biotechne: Interthinking Art, Science and... more

Forthcoming in eds. Kathleen Davidson and Molly Duggins, Sea Currents: The commodification of the Ocean World in Nineteenth Century Art, Science and Culture. Part of the Bloomsbury series, Biotechne: Interthinking Art, Science and Design, edited by Charissa Terranova and Meredith Tromble.

During the Central European Iron Age, and more specifically between 600 and 100 BC, red precious corals (Corallium rubrum) became very popular in many regions, often associated with the so-called (early) Celts. Red corals are ideally... more

During the Central European Iron Age, and more specifically between 600 and 100 BC, red precious corals (Corallium rubrum) became very popular in many regions, often associated with the so-called (early) Celts. Red corals are ideally suited to investigate several key questions of Iron Age research like trade patterns, or social and economic structures. While it is fairly easy to distinguish modern C. rubrum from bone, ivory, or shells, archaeologists are confronted with ancient, hence altered, artifacts. Due to ageing processes, archaeological corals lose their intensive red color and shiny surface, and can easily be confused with these other light-colored materials. We propose a non-destructive multi-stage approach with emphasis on optical examination and mobile Raman spectroscopy to identify archaeological corals amongst other biominerals.

The colour red has been a potent concept in China since ancient times. Red is an auspicious colour and considered to be apotropaic. During the Qing dynasty, red coral was one of the most hardstones at court. This paper explores the... more

The colour red has been a potent concept in China since ancient times. Red is an auspicious colour and considered to be apotropaic. During the Qing dynasty, red coral was one of the most hardstones at court. This paper explores the concept and agency of red in China via the use of a naturally red-coloured material, some of the material qualities of red coral as well as the use of coral as a motif on Qing imperial court robes and on domestic and export ceramics.

The red coral Corallium rubrum is a habitat-forming species with a prominent and structural role in mesophotic habitats, which sustains biodiversity hotspots. This precious coral is threatened by both over-exploitation and temperature... more

The red coral Corallium rubrum is a habitat-forming species with a prominent and structural role in mesophotic habitats, which sustains biodiversity hotspots. This precious coral is threatened by both over-exploitation and temperature driven mass mortality events. We report here that biocalcification, growth rates and polyps' (feeding) activity of Corallium rubrum are significantly reduced at pCO2 scenarios predicted for the end of this century (0.2 pH decrease). Since C. rubrum is a long-living species (>200 years), our results suggest that ocean acidification predicted for 2100 will significantly increases the risk of extinction of present populations. Given the functional role of these corals in the mesophotic zone, we predict that ocean acidification might have cascading effects on the functioning of these habitats worldwide.