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Coral artifacts have been found in ancient Mesopotamian tombs, land-locked Tibet and Mesoamerica.The oldest known use of coral is as roughly pierced beads dating from the Paleolithic age (35,000-10,000 BC). The oldest carved piece of coral known is a small idol found in a Neolithic tomb near Chieti, Italy.In the Bible, Ezekiel (27:16) refers to traders of coral from Aram, thought by many Biblical scholars to refer to Damascus in Syria or northern Mesopotamia.The ancient Hebrews did not appear to value coral highly. Job, when comparing the value of wisdom to rubies, said disparagingly, "coral and jasper are not worthy of mention."
Inlays and ornaments of coral have been found in Celtic tombs from the Iron Age, most notably that of a tribal "warrior queen" -- a predecessor of the warrior queen Boadicea --found in Yorkshire. The Celts were also known to use coral inlay to decorate jewelry and weapons.One of the oldest recorded stories in the world, Gilgamesh was the ancient King of Uruk who may have actually existed in Sumer, on the Euphrates in modern Iraq ca. 2700 BC. |
fertility and eternal life
Perhaps due to its color reminiscent of menstrual blood, perhaps because water equates to life, ancient Mediterranean peoples believed coral contained the life essence of the Mother Goddess, said by some to live in a coral tree under the ocean's surface. Red coral was also associated with the Egyptian goddess Isis, prototype of the beneficent mother goddess, the "bringer of fertility and consolation to all."
One of a handful of gems of organic origin (such as pearl, amber and mother-of-pearl), coral is among the most ancient materials used for jewelry, religious objects and medicine.
coral beads, mediterranean More sophisticated pieces in the ancient world linking coral to precious metals -- a useful indicator of its relative value -- have been found in Sumerian excavations in Iraq and Syria (ca. 3500-2000 BC), probably sourced from the Egyptians.
Cuneiform tablets unearthed by archaeologist Austen Henry Layard in Nineveh, capital of the Assyrian Empire (near today's city of Mosul in Iraq), tell of the Sumerian hero, Gilgamesh, and his search for the "Tree of Life." As the story goes, Gilgamesh went "down" from Sumer to the [Persian] Gulf area where he had been told he would find a plant that would give him eternal life. Archaeologist Juris Zarins believes that
Traded for distant goods like tin and Baltic amber by the Minoans (ca. 2000-1200 BC), coral was also traded by the Phoenicians (ca. 1200-600 BC), and later as we shall see, by the Romans.
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A powerfully sacred talisman in many cultures, coral has been linked with divinities as diverse as the Roman goddess of love and beauty, Venus; the divine Egyptian mother-goddess, Isis; the Roman god of war, Mars; and Ran, the stormy Norse spirit of the sea. Being divinely "of the sea," ancient Mediterranean peoples believed coral could defend ships against lightning and even deflect hurricanes.
Poseidon, god of the sea, was thought to live on the ocean floor in a palace made of gems with a floor of coral.
Worn or carried, coral was used to entice luck; heal women, children and the elderly; diagnose illnesses and ward off calamities caused by the 'evil eye.'
Used to stop bleeding, cure arthritis, calm evil spirits (especially around children), protect harvests and cure sterility, coral could make soils fertile and even scare hatred from a house. A stone head or picture of a Gorgon was often placed or drawn on temples and graves to avert the dark forces of evil.
Ancient Egyptians scattered powdered coral over their fields to protect crops from the ravages of insects or of untimely storms.If worn throughout childhood, coral was believed to make a girl beautiful, preserving her youth and beauty until, as a mother, she one day sacrificed her beads for her children. |
seaweed turns to stone
Relatively common in waters with which the ancient Greeks would have been familiar, their name for coral -- gorgeia -- is associated with the myth of the hero Perseus slaying the gorgon Medusa (whose name means "sovereign female wisdom"), one of three monstrously hideous sisters whose appearance was so terrifying that anyone laying eyes on her would immediately turn to stone.
Medusa had once been a beautiful maiden whose hair was her chief glory, but when she had dared to compete with the beauty of Minerva -- Rome's goddess of wisdom and war (who equated with the Greek Athena and the Egyptian Ma'at) -- the goddess had destroyed Medusa's beauty and changed her beautiful ringlets into hissing serpents.
perseus and medusa
Taking great care not to look directly at Medusa when accidently happening upon the cruel gorgon as she slept near the ocean, the great hero Perseus, son of Jupiter and Danae, could dimly see her head reflected in Minerva's shield. Severing Medusa's fearsome viper-haired head with a mighty blow of his deadly crescent sword, Perseus placed the still blood-dripping snake-hissing head in his pouch for safekeeping. In great need of rest after his harrowing experience, he laid the pouch down on some nearby branches covered by seaweed at the edge of the ocean and took a nap. But even in her lifeless state and concealed in the pouch, Medusa's awesome powers were still strong enough to turn the unfortunate bed of seaweed into solid stone. Feeling great sympathy for the seaweed who, blameless, had done nothing to deserve its sad fate, graceful sea nymphs arose from the briny depths and rescued the now-fossilized strands, taking them gently down to the ocean floor where they became the first coral beds. Coral's protective powers were thought to be especially good for children. Until relatively recently, it was not uncommon in countries on either side of the Mediterranean for parents to hang tiny coral branches on a child's cradle or place a string of small coral beads around a baby's neck soon after birth to "preserve and fasten their teeth," and save them from "the falling sickness."
Paracelsus (1493-1541) -- or more properly, Theophrastus Phillippus Aureolus Bombastus von Hohenheim -- Renaissance physician, surgeon and alchemist, promoted the use of coral which he said "should be worn round the neck of children as a preservative against fits, sorcery, charms, and poison." (He chose the name "para-Celsus" -- above or beyond Celsus -- because he regarded himself as even greater than Celsus, a renowned first-century Roman physician.
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The "Silk Road" -- which eventually covered 4,000 miles -- was named by German geographer and geologist Baron Ferdinand von Richthofen (1833-1905). Something of a misnomer, many other commodities besides silk were traded.Near Egypt's current border with Sudan, the Roman port of Bernike, located on the far reaches of the Roman Empire, was abandoned in the sixth century AD.
Early Christians associated coral with Christ's blood, seeing it as a symbol of Christ's 'death and resurrection.'
The Malabar Coast, known for its fertile rice fields, is a long narrow coastal plain squeezed between the Arabian Sea on the west coast of the Indian subcontinent and the inland mountain chain called the Western Ghats (which effectively cut it off from the rest of India) -- home to some of the finest pepper production in the world where it's called "black gold." Extending about 525 miles -- from Goa in the north to Cape Comorin in the south through the Indian states of Kerala, Karnataka and Goa -- the Malabar Coast is where St. Thomas is said to have landed to preach the gospel in the first century.
Kerala, India's most densely populated as well as its most literate state, boasts the highest percentage of Christians.Located at the source of pepper production, Calicut, the most important port city on the Malabar Coast, served as the hub of the spice trade.Much like today, one of the factors driving the trade imbalance between Rome and India was the West's inability to compete with goods derived from cheap Far East and Southeast Asian labor.
Pliny, in his roles as scientist and naturalist, also promoted the use of ground coral as a treatment for dyspepsia, possibly the most ancient predecessor to today's antacids.
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'black gold' -- neither 'sweet nor pretty'
Starting about 150 BC, the "Silk Road," as it eventually became known -- a growing network of interconnecting caravan trails over which goods and knowledge moved between Europe and the East, linked to trading posts, oases, and marketplaces -- began developing as a prime conduit for spices, quality textiles and gems moving westward, while from the Mediterranean came metals, wine, perfumes, glass, cut gems, Baltic amber -- and coral.
Exotic stops on the fabled Silk Road -- Tashkent, Tehran, Bukhara and Samarkand, to name a few -- became places of legendary wealth, based on the numerous caravans plying the route year after year. The nomadic desert peoples of Central Asia treasured coral, so vibrantly colored compared to their largely dun-hued monochromatic desert environment. For these people with their hard and uncertain lives, red coral came to represent a uniquely protective talisman.
In addition to the Silk Road, for at least three centuries -- from 100-400 AD -- there existed a thriving commercial trade complex linking ports of southern India to those catering to ancient Rome. The favorite destination for traders from the Roman world -- many of whom would have used Red Sea ports like Berenike in Egypt -- was the city of Calicut on India's famed 'Malabar Coast.'
1st century sea trade routes Pliny the Elder (23-79 AD), Roman historian and naturalist, wrote in 77 AD that India [representing 'the East'] absorbed no less than fifty million sesterces of the Roman empire's wealth (about $29M in 1998 dollars) -- much in the form of hard Roman currency -- every year, in return "sending back merchandise to be sold with us at a hundred times its prime cost."
On the other hand, the Romans did have a few items that were highly desired in India. One of these was red coral from the western Mediterranean, highly prized by Indian women who Pliny says would "pay up to twenty times the weight in gold of the coral" -- ensuring the return of at least some Roman currency -- which they used to make jewelry and amulets.
Difficult to fathom today, the product that drove the trade imbalance -- more than any other luxury -- was piper nigrum, black pepper.
Frederick Rosegarten, spice historian said, "Romans were the most extravagant users of 'aromatics' in history," using spices in their food, wines, and perfumes. Rome was so extravagantly fond of pepper, in particular, that Pliny questioned his fellow citizens' passion, noting "pepper is neither sweet nor pretty" -- qualities that rich Romans usually looked for in their imports from the East -- "indeed, it has the virtues neither of fruit nor of berries, its only desirable quality being a certain pungency."
Backing Pliny's account, Simon Winchester, in his 2003 book "Krakatoa:The Day the World Exploded: August 27, 1883," says:
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As a symbol of their married status, Bengali women wear one shell bangle, called a
shakha
-- usually made of conch -- and one coral bangle, called a
paula
. The shell mirrors the qualities of the moon, thereby implying that the bride remains serene and calm while the coral is beneficial to health.Like the Hindus, Pliny, in his roles as scientist and naturalist, also advocated the use of coral as a medical diagnostic tool because of its ability to change color based on the health of the patient.
Ancient Hinduswere known to place a coral amulet on the body of the dead to prevent evil spirits from entering and taking possession.
Red is the color of power in India.
Brahma, first god in the Hindu Trimurti
is depicted as red in color. Married Hindu women apply
sindoor (vermillion) to the
sinthi (center parting of hair). The red color implies passion, fertility and strength.
Navaratna means "nine gems" in Sanskrit.
Mangala
, the Sanskrit word for the planet Mars, is associated with the Hindu god of war, Karttikeya
, particularly popular in southern India. Its ruling deity is
Bhumi, the earth goddess, the mother of all living things including the planet Mars. (The term mangala
can also refer to anything that is regarded as auspicious, such as an amulet.)
Set in the
navaratna
, red coral is believed to benefit the physical body, being regarded as a robust remedy against diseases, helping the memory and acting as a powerful protection against the 'evil eye.'
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the eye of shiva
To the ancient Hindus in India, Nepal and Tibet -- the final destination of much of the ancient Mediterranean's coral -- the gem's auspicious red color made it highly esteemed as a charm against disease and danger.
Besides its ability to bring luck and keep away calamities and the 'evil eye,' red coral -- mungaa in Hindi, pravala in Sanskrit -- was also considered a valuable harbinger of illness or poisoning, believed to pale in color if the wearer was ill or had even been exposed to illness -- or darken as the wearer began to recover.
vamana and the demon king bali
Chief of the Celestials, Lord Vishnu, in the guise of the Divine Brahmin Dwarf, Vamana, asked the arrogant Demon King Bali, who ruled the sky and the earth, for a plot of land -- a mere three paces wide upon which to meditate. Bali agreed whereupon with his first pace, Vamana, now back in the form of Vishnu, covered all of the earth. With his second he covered all the heavens. Bali, realizing he had been tricked, battled with Vishnu. During the struggle, Vishnu prevailed, breaking Bali's body into pieces, taking on the shape of gems and jewels. Bali's blood that flowed down to the sea formed coral. Today in India, reddish yellow coral is known as shivanetra or rudrakhsha -- the "eye of Shiva" the destroyer, third god in the Hindu Trimurti (the holy Trinity that includes Brahma and Vishnu) -- a symbol of spirituality and renunciation.
the navaratna
The most well-known navaratna design has a ruby, representing the sun, in the center encircled by the other eight planetary gemstones: diamond for Venus, pearl for Moon, red coral for Mars / Mangala, hessonite for Rahu (the moon's ascending node), blue sapphire for Saturn, cat's-eye for Ketu (the moon's descending node), yellow sapphire for Jupiter and emerald for Mercury. |
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In the Middle Ages, those who could afford it added powdered coral to their children's food to protect them from epidemics.
English naturalist and geologist John Woodward (1665-1728) emphasized the inanimate aspect of corals and regarded them as stones.
Peyssonnel, a member of the French Acad?mie de Sciences
, is also known for his extensive documentation of the "plague" that occurred in the African Mediterranean (Tunisia and Algeria), 1724-1725.Shortly after Trembley's findings were accepted, R?aumur publicly recognized Peyyssonnel's contribution in his "Memories to Help the History of Insects" (1742). |
animal, vegetable or mineral?
The very nature of coral was up for question during Europe's Middle Ages -- a time when superstition predominated but inquiring minds had begun to explore. Fierce debates raged as to whether it was animal, vegetable or even mineral -- an important distinction when many still believed it necessary to carry a few pieces of coral when traveling to ward off witches.
It was not until 1726 that a young French doctor and naturalist from Marseilles, Jean-André Peyssonnel, discovered the answer. Writing to the famous French physicist René-Antoine Perchault de Réaumur (1683-1757), he recounted his observation:
However, Réaumur, a true man of his times, criticized Peyssonnel's work and chose to ignore it. It was not until several years later, after Genevan biologist and educationalist Abraham Trembley (1710-1784) had conducted his ground-breaking research on fresh water hydra -- an animal soon proven to be closely related to corals -- that the jury concurred: corals were animals.
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So prized was pepper in fourteenth century Europe, it was even used to pay dowries, taxes and rents.
Isabella of Aragon (1470-1498), King Manuel's first wife was the eldest daughter of Ferdinand (1452-1516) and Isabella (1451-1504), sponsors of Columbus. Isabella's youngest sister, Catherine of Aragon became the first of Henry VIII's six wives.The Order of Christ, Portuguese successor to the Knights Templar, financed most Portuguese voyages of discovery. Ships sailed under their flag and crews included members of the order.
Cabo Tormentoso
was renamed Cabo de Bõa Esperança
("Cape of Good Hope") by Manuel I's father John II of Portugal (1455-1495) because for Portugal it represented the possibility of a route to the east.The word "calico" was derived from "Calicut," the most important port city on the Malabar Coast, and a cloth weaving center
When da Gama landed in Karala, it was already home to sizable populations of Jews (72 AD - fleeing Roman persecution), Syriac Christians (190 AD), Jains, Islamic Moors and Arabs (ca. 682 AD - the first mosque built outside Arabia), as well as indiginous Hindus.After da Gama's return, King Manuel, eager to further trade relations with the Zamorin (and challenge Venice's maritime supremacy) readied a fleet of 13 ships for Portugal's next merchant voyage to India, making Pedro Alvarez Cabral (1460-1526) commander. For unknown reasons, instead of making for the Cape, Cabral sailed with the trades, cutting across the South Atlantic in a southwesterly direction, running into Brazil 43 days later. Taking official possession of Brazil in the name of Portugal, from there he proceeded to India, losing half his fleet on the way. |
for christ and pepper!
A century and a half before coral's status had been resolved, the Mediterranean coral trade began heating up once again, thanks, in part, to Portuguese Admiral Vasco da Gama (1469-1524), in search of a direct route to Indian spice sources, particularly the coveted, pricey pepper for which Europe continued to long -- and whose trade Venice had long monopolized as Europe's premier maritime and commercial power.
Controlling the distribution of pepper -- the most widely traded commodity in fourteenth century Europe -- had made the Republic of Venice rich beyond compare. And Portugal -- "training-ground of a race of adventurous seamen" heady with 'discoverer's fever' begun at the instigation of Prince Henry the Navigator (1394-1460) -- was eager to claim its share of the wealth.
In 1498, under the auspices of King Manuel I of Portugal (1469-1521), da Gama -- at the helm of his flagship the Saõ Raphael and flying a silken banner displaying the Cross of the Order of Christ -- began his search for a direct sea route from Europe to India, via southern Africa's blustery Cape of Good Hope, first rounded by Portuguese navigator Bartolomeu Dias in 1488 and known to Portuguese explorers as Cabo Tormentoso, "Cape of Storms." Traveling up the east coast of Africa, da Gama picked up an Arab pilot in Mombasa (Kenya) who directed the fleet to India -- their rallying cry: "for Christ and spices!"
Arriving in Calicut -- in what is now the Indian state of Karala on India's Malibar Coast -- da Gama and his crew had spent a little more than ten months on their voyage from Portugal, thus beginning, as Indian historian K.M. Panikar has noted, the "Vasco da Gama epoch of Asian history -- that is, the era of history when European nations alone controlled the seas until the emergence of Japan and the United States as major naval powers at the end of the nineteenth century."
calicut Returning to Portugal exactly two years and two days after the his original departure, the distance da Gama had sailed was three times the distance traveled by Columbus during his 1492 voyage to the New World.
With a valuable cargo of precious stones and spices -- and the one-third of his crew who hadn't succumbed to scurvy -- da Gama also brought a message for King Manuel from the local Hindu ruler, the Zamorin of Calicut (the "Ocean King," who, with Arab help, had emerged as the dominant ruler in the territory, encouraging overseas trade), written on a palm leaf:
After fifteen-hundred years, the Silk Road -- by this time the main transportation artery between East and West -- had lost its importance to Europe. It would gradually sink into oblivion.
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Early chroniclers such as Greek historian Diodorus Siculus (ca. 90-20 BC) reported the Campanian plain -- on which Torre del Greco sits -- was called "Phlegrean Fields" ("fiery fields") because of the mountain that "spouted forth fire as Aetna did in Sicily." First century AD Roman architect Vitruvius Pollio, reported in his
"The Architectura" (ca. 23-27 AD) that the mountain had been active from 46 through 30 BC, adding that "once fires burnt below Vesuvius and sometimes it spouted flames on the surrounding fields."
Torre del Greco has been destroyed many more times in recent history: in 1631 (destroying two-thirds of the older town), 1737, 1794 and 1861. The 1794 lava flow wiped out half the town's population. Great damage was also done by an earthquake in 1857. In total, Vesuvius has erupted about three dozen times since 79 AD, most recently from 1913-1944.From the town of Torre del Greco, boats harvested coral from beds in the Gulf of Naples, as well as from beds near the islands of Capri, Sicily, Sardinia and even as far away as Corfu.One such attack by the Visigoths, led by Alaric -- he of "pepper ransom" fame -- occurred in 410 AD. Under the auspices of establishing a Germanic kingdom on Roman soil by bringing his people into connection with Roman civilization, Alaric sacked Rome, moving on from there to savage the surrounding countryside, including the area around Napeolis.
Italian men used to present coral jewelry to their beloved as a token of love and fidelity and to signify their engagement.One of the rarest and most prized corals was that from the Sciacca coral bank, named after the nearby village of Sciacca on Sicily, also near a volcano, Julia, this one relatively new. A beautiful pink-orange variety, today it is completely extinct. Related to the 'horn of plenty,' the Horned God, often ram-headed, was a god of nature and fertility. Known to many cultures around the world, to the Celts, he was
Cernunnos
; to the Norse,
Freyr
, to the Druids,
Hu Gadarn
; to the Canaanite-Phoenicians,
Ba'al
; to the Egyptians,
Amon
; and to the Greeks,
Bacchus
. |
in the shadow of vesuvius
Thanks to Vasco da Gama and his fellow sea captains, a little after the start of the sixteenth century a new day was dawning for Torre del Greco. The world's premier coral-working seaport town on Italy's southwest coast was coming out of a thousand year slump. Hard-pressed to keep up with the increased demand, Europe's new-found ability to reach the teeming markets of Southeast Asia and the Far East were revitalizing the coral industry.
torre del greco, heart of the mediterranean coral industry Although Neapolis and the surrounding countryside fell to the Romans in 326 BC, the area remained a center of Greek culture, becoming a magnet for artists and patrons of the arts.
Torre del Greco, as well as some nearby villages -- Torre del Annunziata and Ercolano -- became known in particular for its beautiful carved coral cameos, a craft that had been introduced by the Greeks based on the seemingly unlimited supply of superb corals in the nearby waters.
Severely impacting the coral trade that would have been in full swing between Red Sea ports and India, the cataclysmic eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 AD, which buried now famous towns such as Pompeii and Herculaneum, also buried a number of coral-working towns, including Torre del Greco.
carved coral depiction of eros, greek god of love & desire Fast forward through the Dark Ages: as the Italian peninsula began coming back to life, Campania towns began rebuilding themselves once again near the rich soils of Vesuvius and the lucrative fishing on the Bay of Naples. With the opening of trade routes 'around the Cape,' in the late fifteenth century, Torre del Greco flourished, once again becoming known for its beautiful coral work.
While Torre del Greco is still known as the center of the Mediterranean coral industry there is little coral still harvested commercially in the Mediterranean. However, the town still processes over half of the world's coral harvest, most of which comes in from Japan and China.
the cornuto
Like many of the customs handed down through the ages, the Neapolitan tradition of making cornuto charms from silver (once sacred to the moon goddess, Luna) and blood coral (once sacred to the sea goddess, Venus) hints at the survival of a link between the ancient worship of a pre-Christian horned animal god (the "Horned One") and a mother- or fertility-goddess. |
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Zlarin's twentieth century claim to fame: the inventor of the Maglite torch, Ante Maglica, was born in Zlarin and now is said to devote some of his earnings to Zlarin's economic development.
Croatia has been called "the land of a thousand islands." It boasts 1,185 islands, islets and reefs with approximately 2,500 miles of Adriatic shoreline. Many of these, covered with olive groves and vineyards, have been settled since Roman times. One of the forty islands that make up the ?ibenik Archipelago and lying in the geographical center of the Dalmation Coast, Zlarin is the third largest (about 5 sq. miles) and is the closest island to the mainland of Croatia, about one nautical mile from land.
Connected to the mainland cities of Sibenik and Vodice by ship (about 10 times a day) Zlarin is one of the rare islands of the Adriatic that does not allow cars.At least one of Zlarin's many churches from the sixteenth or seventeenth century features a coral-draped Madonna.The vast Ottoman Empire (which eventually overtook Zlarin and the entire Balkan Peninsula) would have been the island's primary customer, both in terms of supplying the citizenry of its huge extended empire -- including the Anatolian heartland -- and as the assembly point for the countless Silk Road caravans carrying their precious cargos of luxury goods, including coral, to Central Asia and the Far East. |
island of red corals
One can't leave the Mediterranean without talking about one other relatively close location that cashed in on the burgeoning demand for coral in the sixteenth century and for several hundred years after: the small Adriatic island of Zlarin off Croatia's Dalmation coast, once known as the "island of red corals."
Nine-hundred years later, the island served as one of Venice's many Adriatic naval posts, whose duty it was to ensure the safe navigation of Venice's numerous trading ships plying local seas that were all too often threatened by pirates, various sundry invaders of the Eastern Roman Empire -- or the Byzantines themselves.
By the late thirteenth century AD, it was Slav farmers and fishermen from the mainland and beyond, seeking out the relative safety of the island in an effort to escape the invading Ottoman Turks sweeping through the area on their way to conquer Constantinople and bring down the teetering Byzantine Empire.
Within a couple of hundred years, the harvesting and processing of coral -- known locally as crveni koralj -- had become the main occupation of the islanders, bringing Zlarin economic prosperity that lasted till the twentieth century when coral became depleted and many inhabitants were forced to emigrate.
Today, nothing remains of Zlarin's past glories except its Coral Museum and one small workshop for working coral shipped in from other parts of the world.
anatolian amulets: the turkish ??leme
Amulets and charms inspire much of the Anatolian breast jewelry, Often composed of groups of coral beads, blue beads and silver balls -- the design is referred to as ??leme in Turkish, meaning "triplet." In the Anatolian countryside, especially, the triplet design can frequently be seen in the traditional headgear, belts, necklaces, and rings of Anatolian women; it even shows up in their embroidery patterns. The meaning behind the three-part design that refers to one's hand, loins, and tongue is: "do not commit theft," "protect one's honor," and "do not lie." |
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One reason red coral was thought to be imbued with special protective powers was that it was once a living animal.Like the ancient Mediterranean people, the Chinese also believed in coral's ability to calm down storms and typhoons, protect sailors, and diminish thunder and lightning.Before the re-emergence of Xi'an (Chang'an) the eastern most terminus of the Silk Road was Luoyang, on the Yellow River. The Northern Wei Dynasty moved its capital there in 493 AD, starting construction of the artificial Longmen Caves. More than 30,000 Buddhist images from the time of this dynasty have been found in the caves.
Coral is associated with longevity in China as well as Vietnam. The tortoise, a symbol of longevity and perfection is usually depicted with a red coral branch in its mouth and a crane on its back. And, as one of the Buddha's Eight Precious Objects, a red coral branch represented a tree that grew at the bottom of the ocean and blossomed only once in a hundred years, again symbolizing longevity.
Beijing's Altar of the Sun (RiTan) is reputed to have once been made of red coral.When creating sacred Buddhist texts in Mongolia, the sacred "nine gems" that represent the gem-like teachings of the Buddha -- gold, silver, coral, pearls, lapis lazuli, turquoise, steel, copper, and mother-of-pearl -- were sometimes ground up for use as pigments to hand write the sutras.
Qing emperors had to wear specially-made accessories, 'court' belts and necklaces made of red coral when meeting with their ministers. Formal occasions for Qing empresses and consorts demanded specific ceremonial court jewelry: a 'crown,' a single-strand pearl necklace, a double-strand coral necklace, and earrings made of gold and pearls.The English word "mandarin" is thought to come (through the Portuguese in Macao) from the Malay mantri
meaning "a counselor or minister of state" or from the Portuguese mandar
, meaning "to command." The ultimate origin is the Sanskrit root man-
, meaning "to think" or
mantrin-
, meaning "counselor." The nine ranks of mandarins were divided into two 'classes'. Each class of the lower ranks (4-9) were further divided into 'grades.' Thus, there were thirty separate grades in all. (The number nine is considered a good in Chinese culture because it sounds the same as the word "long lasting.") The term "rank" referred not only to position but to moral character. First-rank officials represented the ideal of "honesty and incorruptibility" to be emulated by every citizen -- a concept often represented by a lotus flower which "emerging unstained from the filth, is the gentleman among flowers." An apt metaphor, in Chinese "lotus" (lian) is pronounced the same way as "incorruptibility."
Mandarins ("kwans" or "guans") earned their positions by passing detailed civil service examinations based mainly on the works of Kong Fuzi (551-479 BC), whom we know as "Confucius".
Rank badges -- p'u fang
which were square, were worn on a short black surcoat -- a
p'u-fu
-- that fit over also-defined under robes. Although styles regarding the placement of badges on the surcoat evolved, they were generally worn on the back, sleeves, or front (with the two sides coming together to form a whole). (In Chines cosmology, a square stands for "earth." The
fu
in
p'u fu
means "the right to judge.")
Civil officials -- mandarins -- wore badges displaying birds which signified a higher stature than their military counterparts whose badges depicted animals.The name of the mandarin's cap, the
dingdai hualing
-- commonly called the dingzi
-- means "Colored Plumes on the Head." Summer dingzi
were of a conical shape woven from strips of bamboo and edged with silk brocade while the winter dingzi
was a black skull cap with upturned fur brim .The custom of using stones and plumes to indicate rank was an ancient relic of the N?zhen people (ancestors of the Manchu). The Jesuits, who began their first Chinese mission in 1582 during the Ming dynasty, found in China an intellectual and humanist atmosphere very similar to that burgeoning in Europe.
Mandarin ranks, buttons, and badges
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the felicitous color
Red is the most significant color in Chinese culture. The color of luck, the color of new beginnings -- the "felicitous color" associated with the gods -- red is the essence of China. A symbol of health, wealth, favor and high social status in ancient China, red is still auspicious, imbued with centuries of meaning.
For the Chinese, coral was not only an auspicious color, it also had deep religious meaning -- especially after Buddhism took root in China.
buddhism in china Although Buddhism had initially been introduced during the first century AD, a time when the then reigning Han dynasty was in a state of chaos, it was only after their fall in 220 AD that the new religion began to gain widespread popularity, made possible largely through the growing importance of the 'Silk Road' and the new ideas that traveled along it.
map: tourcn.com Following the traders, a continuous stream of Buddhist missionaries from India and Central Asia found enthusiastic converts at every level of Chinese society, an effort also aided by powerful patrons among the nomadic non-Chinese dynasties from Central Asia, in particular the Northern Wei, who ruled China from 386-534 AD. Although trade had been responsible for bringing Buddhism into China, the rapidly growing numbers of Buddhist converts in and of itself stimulated trade. Merchants were challenged to meet the growing demand for exotic foreign "high value / low volume" items such as glass, wool, incense and gems that came to represent the Buddhist saptaratna (the seven jewels of royal power) -- gold, silver, crystal, lapis lazuli, carnelian, pearls and Mediterranean coral -- much of which was destined to either adorn the rapidly proliferating Buddhist temples, images, and reliquaries, or enhance the coffers of some Buddhist monastery or convent. Hundreds of years and many dynasties later, coral's magical appeal remained intact. In 1644, the Manchus, a nomadic ethnic group out of Manchuria, became masters of China, establishing China's last imperial dynasty, the Qing (1644-1911).
Although trappings of rank had always played a significant and colorful role in Imperial China, starting with the Ming dynasty and continuing into the Qing, they became even more important.
mandarin, qing dynasty For instance, court etiquette required that all officials at Manchu and Han banquets wear their official court regalia -- whose every infinitesimal design detail would have been stipulated -- including a string of 108 coral 'court beads.' Sir John F. Davis, Governor of Hong Kong in the 1840's observed:
Mandarins and military officers -- China's top-ranking public officials -- of which there were nine ranks, were required to wear large "badges," square emblems of a certain color and motif, elaborately embroidered whose pattern was spelled out to the tiniest detail, according to their rank and function.
winter dingdai hualing of the second rank
adam schall, jesuit mandarin
Although certainly not common, it was not unheard of for foreigners to be honored with mandarin status. Johann Adam Schall von Bell (1591-1669), a Jesuit who spent forty-seven years in China -- taking on the Chinese name of Tang-Jo-Wang -- was an expert mathematician and astronomer who had been trained at Galileo's observatory. Because his knowledge benefited the court (specifically the court astrologers), the last Ming emperor, Chongzhen (1628-1644) awarded Schall three Imperial Titles -- one of these being the title of Tung hiuen kiao shi, "most profound doctor" -- and the right to "wear the coral button." Bell repeatedly tried to refuse the honor because he said it "accorded ill with religious humility." His mandarin status was later reconfirmed by the first Qing Dynasty (Manchu ) Emperor, Shunzhi (r. 1644-1661), who soon died. Jealousy dogged Bell's court career. Condemned to be dismembered and beheaded in 1665 by the regents of Shunzhi's still small son -- who became known to history as Kangxi (1662-1722), one of China's greatest emperors -- Bell was accused of "causing the death of the late emperor by the casting of a spell." However, providence intervened: on the designated day of his execution, a violent earthquake was felt at Peking, a 'thick darkness' covered the city, a meteor of strange aspect appeared in the heavens, and a fire in the part of the imperial palace where the sentence had been delivered reduced it to ashes. Bell's sentence was commuted. He died the year after, apparently of natural causes. |
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Like the Chinese and Hindus, red is auspicious and sacred to Tibetan Buddhists: it is one of the colors of the Five Transcendental Buddhas -- variously referred to as the
Dhyani Buddhas, or
tathagathas, "perfected ones" -- as well as the color of a monk's garments. Because it has protective qualities, it's often used to paint sacred buildings.
Coral's hot 'solar energy', coupled with cool 'moon metal' silver, symbolizes the female and male aspects of "Bodhicitta," the "compassionate mind of enlightenment."
Similar to Buddhism in China, coral is one of the Buddha's "seven treasures of royal power" (rgyal-srid rin-chen sna-bdun), but with gold, silver, coral, lapis lazuli, seashell, agate, pearl and carnelian.
Thangka
is a Tibetan word that means "silk, satin or cloth painting scroll that can be rolled up."A
stupa
is Buddhist commemorative monument usually housing sacred relics associated with the Buddha or other saintly persons.In the Tibetan language,
potala
means "residence of the Goddess of Mercy." Recounting his amazing twenty-four year journey from Venice to the Far East and back, Marco Polo (1254-1324) noted that coral was one of the stones held in high regard among the Tibetans who used it to adorn idols in their temples.
Tibetan women from the upper class display elaborate head dresses of pearls, turquoise, and coral on a wooden frame, while herdswomen plait their hair with stones like coral, turquoise and amber.The head dress for hereditary noblewomen in some regions of Tibet is called
mu-tig-spa-phrug
("pearl decorated headgear"), and 'ordinary' noblewomen were traditionally not allowed to wear them -- they could only wear byu-ru-spa-phrug spa-phrug
("coral decorated headgear").A
gesaima
is a kind of female attendant to noblewomen. A
yasuo
is a master of ceremonies for grand occasions like horse racing at the annual Buddhist service. |
the gift from 'mother ocean'
Approximately a thousand years before the Qing dynasty's emergence from Manchuria, due east on the far other side of China, there existed the mystical kingdom of Tibet, a country so far above sea level its average altitude is nearly three miles high -- 14,763 ft. Not a lot is known about Tibet until around 500-700 AD when a powerful, unified kingdom emerged, opening its heretofore unassailable Himalayan passes to the outside world.
Buddhism quickly found its way in, taking root so rapidly that by the end of the eighth century AD it had become the official state religion. However, the Tibetan version of Buddhism developed into a unique shamanistic form, blending the new religion with Tibet's history and culture, in such a way that it extended into every area of daily life. And so, items emblematic of the religion, such as coral, permeated daily life also.
Representing the source of life to Tibetans, coral is considered a gift from 'mother ocean' -- a brooding symbol of all that is impenetrable, all that can be felt but never known. A way to remind Tibetans of their 'eternal foundation,' it lives and breathes in the salty depths...but its roots are anchored in the earth.
Thought to teach form as well as "flow and flexibility within form," coral is one of the Buddha's "Five Sacred Stones" that symbolize the energy of the life force (the remaining four being crystal, for light; turquoise, for infinity of sea and sky; gold, for the golden ray of the sun; and silver, for the light of the moon).
antique tibetan amulet box Tibetan thangkas, traditional intricately designed depictions of holy beings painted on cloth -- used as a 'guide' to contemplative exercises -- often show a stalk of byu-ru yan-lag brgyad-pa ("eight-branched coral"). Coral is also one of the primary stones used to embellish gau, portable shrines where verses and prayers are kept, close to the owner's heart.
Many stupas, especially those in the Potala Palace in Lhasa -- religious and political center of old Tibet and the winter palace of Dalai Lamas -- are decorated with enormous amounts of coral (often coupled with pearls). And, one of the most common neck ornaments in Tibet is a rosary or mala of one-hundred and eight coral and/or turquoise beads -- each bead a symbol of the never ending cycle of birth, death, and rebirth in their quest to achieve enlightenment.
With little if any differentiation between religious realms and everyday life in Tibet, coral, with all its great spiritual symbolism is worn by men and women alike as part of their daily attire, although 'how' may differ slightly from region to region. Coral also has a more pragmatic symbolism.
costume and ornaments of a gesaima and yasuo (note gasaima's large coral rosary) Men often sport elaborately braided hair decorated with jade -- said to represent the soul -- and red or black hair tassels composed of coral and agate. They often sport a coral earring, set in silver or sometimes even gold, in their left ear. Coral is also set in silver in the belts and swords or knives of both sexes.
Historically, like the Han and Manchu, a hat was the most visible symbol of a man's position, learning and property. The main accoutrement of official rank in Tibet was the hat finial on the zhua-mo-lcags-mdav ("round hat"). Pearl -- the "wish-fulfilling jewel" and "illusive pearl of wisdom and truth" -- represented the first rank; a "gem," the second; coral, the third; and turquoise, the fourth.
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The historical kingdom of Benin is best known for the artistry of its bronze copper and wood masks and figurines that were devoted almost exclusively to the resplendence of the Edo court.
Along with the Belgians record of atrocities in the Congo, the Brit's "Punitive Expedition" of 1897 was part of the inspiration behind Joseph Conrad's great novel Heart of Darkness
which he started writing in 1898. In both cases, European rapacity was based on the lust for rubber and to a lesser extent, palm oil.
Emblems of kingship as legitimate as the Royal Sceptre of England, the spiritually powerful royal coral beads were and are
the emblems of kingship. Possession of them determines who sits on the throne. Said to possess a mystical power, it is believed that any proclamations or curses the
Oba makes when holding them will come to pass.The
Oba
is considered to be divine, closely aligned with the Yoruba/Edo god/goddess Olokun
who is often depicted with a coral dress. Tradition says he rules life on land just as his counterpart rules the waters. The
Oba
was often symbolized by the mudfish, a creature able to leave the water and survive on land as well as deliver an electric shock, making it an apt image of the Oba's power. One of the
Oba's many titles,
Agbaghe, N'Ovbi Olokun
, translates to "
Olokun's son, the cynosure of all mortals."For the Edo, who live near the equator, coolness symbolizes all that is positive in life -- purity, good luck, health and the watery world of Olokun
.Traditionally, the
iyoba
, Queen Mother of Benin, has wielded considerable power as she is considered a co-ruler with theOba
.Until recent times, the
iyoba, after bearing the Oba's first son, had no other children, devoting her life to raising the future ruler of the kingdom. She is also a Priestess of Olokun, adding even further to her power.
King Charles II of England chartered the Royal African Company in 1672. It went on to dominate the slave trade between Africa and North America for the next fifty years, wresting control from the Dutch who had overtaken the Portuguese.Avidly exploring the west coast of Africa, the Portuguese were hoping to horn in on the fabled Saharan gold trade and to establish a sea route around Africa to India. In 1471, they had their first visit with the Oba
, beginning such a cozy relationship that Portuguese even came to be spoken at the Oba's court.
Gwatto, the kingdom of Benin's primary river port -- about twenty-five miles from Benin City on the Benin River -- became the depot to handle the peppers, ivory, and increasing numbers of slaves offered by the Oba
in exchange for coral beads and other desirable goods from the Portuguese.
Two things checked Portugal's influence in the kingdom of Benin: first, Portugal stopped buying its pepper from the Oba
-- because after da Gama's daring voyage in 1498 it could get all its spices on India's Malabar Coast; and secondly, unlike virtually another other African kingdom, the
Oba
soon banned the export of slaves (although it continued to deal in slaves internally), thereby isolating itself from the growth of what was to become
the major export from the Nigerian coast for the next three-hundred years.(The kingdom of Benin should not be confused with the current Republic of Benin, formerly known as the kingdom of Dahomey, historically notorious as "the Slave Coast." For well over a century, an average of 10,000 slaves a year were shipped from it -- mostly to Brazil and the Caribbean, particularly, Haiti.)
Architect of the Benin City bloodbath, Ralph Moor committed suicide in Barnes (near London) in September 1909, drinking the potassium cyanide he had bought to kill the wasps in his garden. |
blessed of olokun
The Far East may have been fond of its coral but nowhere has coral played a more significant role than in the historical and artistically sophisticated kingdom of Benin, now a part of the country of Nigeria. Governed from the fourteenth century by an all-powerful divine Oba, the 800-year-old kingdom came to an abrupt close in 1897.
Sir Ralph Moor (b.?-1909), Consul General of the Niger Coast Protectorate, had long argued that Benin -- of all the countries of Africa, the least affected by Europeans -- should be opened up to trade, "if necessary by force," an act that would complete Britain's occupation of southwestern Nigeria.
In what is now seen as a classic case of Britain's imperialism run wildly amok, in 1897, under the flimsiest of pretexts, a 1,200 member British force known as the "Punitive Expedition" (which also included black troops) captured, looted and burned the city of Benin City (Edo), destroying much of the country's treasured art or carrying it off -- much of which was later sold at auction to pay for the expedition -- and obliterating the power of the Oba.
oba ovonramwen university of laval Minus the coral of his kingship, Oba Ovonramwen was deposed, tried and exiled to Calabar -- a town located on Nigeria's far eastern coast -- with only two of his eighty wives, while six of his chiefs were executed by the British. Nominally replaced by the British-friendly Chief Obaseki (retitled the "Iyase of Benin") -- who controlled many villages with rubber-producing forests -- and a "council of chiefs," real power resided with the British Resident.
the leopard and the oba
The leopard was, and still is, a widespread symbol of authority and rulership in southern Nigeria, conferring by association the animal's characteristic beauty and elegance, as well as its deadliness, speed, and surety upon the wearer. Therefore, it's only fitting that the leopard serves as the Oba's animal counterpart.
Since the Oba was the only person in the kingdom of Benin who had the right to take human life, when he delegated his power to kill to his war leaders, he gave them leopard head pendants. The Edo proverb "the leopard has a good head, that is why he has the beads," reinforces a linkage between the Oba (whose coral-beaded attire exemplifies his own wealth, achievement, and position) and the leopard. 
oba akenzua ii of benin (1899-1978)
john barbot in the kingdom of benin
John Barbot (?-d.1720), a French-born agent in the ivory and slave trade for the Royal African Company (RAC), who had emigrated from France to Britain with his brother (becaming a British subject in 1688), made at least two voyages to the West Coast of Africa, in 1678 and 1682. In the following excerpts -- originally published in France in 1682 and translated into English in 1746 -- Barbot describes some of the customs of the kingdom of Benin, known to Europeans at the time as "the Great Benin": "From among those Reis de Ruas they commonly chuse the governors of provinces and towns; but every one of them is subordinate to, and dependent on the aforemention'd great Veadors, as being generally put into those imployments, by their recommendation to the king, who usually presents each of them, when so promoted to the government of provinces, towns or districts, with a string of coral, as an ensign or badge of this office; being there equivalent to an order of knight-hood in European courts. "They are obliged to wear that string continually about their necks, without ever daring to put it off on any account whatsoever; and in case they lose it by carelessness, or any other accident, or if stolen from them, they forfeit their heads, and are accordingly executed without remission. And there have been instances of this nature, five men having been put to death for a string of coral so lost, tho' not intrinsically worth two-pence: the officer to whom the chain or string belong'd, because he had suffer'd it to be stolen from him, the thief who own'd he had stolen it, and three more who were privy to it, and did not timely discover it. "This law is so rigidly observ'd, that the officers so intrusted with a string of coral by the king, whensoever they happen to lose it, though it be taken from about their necks by main force, immediately say, I am a dead man; and therefore regard no perils though ever so great, if there be hopes of recovering it by force from those who have stolen it. "Therefore I advise all sea-faring Europeans, trading to those parts, never to meddle with the strings of coral belonging to any such officers, not even in jest; because the Black that permits it, is immediately sent for to the king, and by his order close imprisoned, and put to death. "The same punishment is inflicted on any person whatsoever that counterfeits those strings of coral, or has any in his possession, without the king's grant." 
oba with mudfish legs, supported by attendants chrisray His grandson, Solamon Eredieuwa II, a respected attorney in Nigeria, who took over the post in 1978, is the 38th descendant of the line. He is said to hold considerable political, albeit unofficial, influence in the Edo and Delta states of modern Nigeria
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A color thought to be erotic to men in Japan, red is the color of beauty and happiness.
Red undergarments are thought to ward off menstrual pain and keep the female reproductive organs healthy and functioning.
Often misunderstood in popular lore, geisha are not 'ladies of the night' but professional female entertainers who perform traditional Japanese arts at banquets and dinners.
Taiwan has never been ruled by the People's Republic of China and has not been a province of China for over a hundred years. After being occupied by the Dutch in the 1600s, Taiwan remained a backwater territory that received little imperial attention for over 200 years. It was not until 1887 that Qing officials declared Taiwan a province of their empire. But only eight years later, China ceded Taiwan to Japan after losing the Sino-Japanese war. Taiwan then became a colony of Japan from 1895 until the end of World War II in 1945.In Polynesian societies like Hawaii, Samoa and Tahiti, coral is carried as a Kahuna magical charm. It is believed to enhance love and harmony, offer protection from evil, increase imagination and resolve conflict.
In Tahitian cosmology, Pua Tu Tahi
is a dangerous demon living under the sea. His name means "Coral Rock Standing Alone."
Netsuke
is actually two words --"ne" and "tsuke." Together, they mean "root for fastening."
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a touch of scarlet
Another culture for whom red is auspicious is that of Japan. There is a word in Japanese, ko itten, which means "touch of scarlet." The word is used as an affectionate term for women, especially geisha. Traditionally, maiko -- young geisha in training -- wear red undergarments. Depending on the season, geisha also wear crimson lining under their kimonos. And, both maiko and geisha wear bright red lipstick.
Enamoured of coral's most common color and its association with the demi-monde, it was the Japanese who started the modern coral trade in Taiwan in the early 1900's back when Taiwan was a colony of Japan. Before mechanization, Polynesian divers were often brought in to help harvest the coral. However, Taiwan's 'golden era' of coral trade didn't begin until about forty years ago when sophisticated mining technology was introduced from Japan.
ryujin, the dragon king
In Japanese mythology, the palace of Ryujin (also known as Rinjin), the Japanese dragon king, is built from red and white coral. The palace -- guarded by dragons -- is full of treasure, especially the Tide Jewels, which control the ebb and flow of tidal waters. Fish and other sea life serve Ryujin as vassals, with the turtle acting as the dragon's main messenger. 
dragon netsuke, mid 19th century, ivory and coral; genryosai, artist Today, netsuke is a collector's item, the best examples selling for many thousands of dollars.
what is netsuke?
Netsuke was 'invented' to serve a very practical function. Traditional Japanese garments -- kosode and kimono -- had no pockets. Men who wore them needed a place to keep personal belongings such as pipes, tobacco, money, seals, or medicines. The elegant solution was to place such objects in containers (called sagemono) hung by cords from the robes' sash. The containers might take the form of a pouch or a small woven basket, but the most popular were beautifully crafted boxes (inro), which were held shut by ojime (sliding beads on cords). But whatever the form of the container, the fastener that secured its cord at the top of the sash was a carved, button-like toggle called a netsuke. |
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At one time, a Native American husband in the Southwest would give red coral jewelry to his wife so that she might bear him many children.
Ground turquoise and ground coral was used by the Navajo to create their sacred sand paintings. The paintings were created to bring rain to their parched land.
Although jewelry styles differ widely between the Zuni and Navajo, red-orange coral is one of the four element gemstones of both nations. The predominate colors and stones they both use in their jewelry are turquoise, red coral, black jet or obsidian and white mother-of-pearl.
Coral is also one of the four colors used for the directions in the Hopi / Zuni 'Road of Life.' It is considered a representative of both the warm energy of the Sun and the southern direction. |
courage and protection
Coral, harvested from nearby reefs, also played a significant part in Mesoamerican culture, especially among the Mixtec (900-1250 AD), the ancient civilization of pre-colonial Mexico.
mask, teotihuacan, 300-650 ad. malinaltepec, stone, shells, obsidian, turquoise, corals It was the Spanish who introduced red Mediterranean coral to Native Americans of the Southwest.
ruby throated hummingbird pendant pin; artists, harlan & monica coonsis A welcome addition to the Southwest palette, coral represents the blood of Mother Earth, bringing courage and protection. The deep red coral also makes a stunning contrast to the turquoise and silver with which it is often worked.
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- abalone
- almandine garnet
- amber
- amethyst
- ametrine
- apatite
- aquamarine
- boulder opal
- calcite
- carnelian
- chalcedony
- chrysoprase
- cinnabar
- citrine
- coral
- druse
- fire opal
- fluorite
- fossilized shell
- garnet
- green garnet
- hematite
- hessonite
- iolite
- jasper
- labradorite
- lapis lazuli
- malachite
- milky quartz
- moldavite
- moonstone
- mother-of-pearl
- obsidian
- onyx
- opal-common
- paua
- peridot
- peruvian opal
- prehnite
- pyrite
- quartz
- rose quartz
- rutilated quartz
- serpentine
- shells
- smoky quartz
- tanzanite
- tourmalinated quartz