corallium rubrum
mediterranean coral & pearl necklace
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| composition | calcium carbonate or conchiolin |
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| name source | from the ancient Greek korallion |
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| other accepted names | corallium rubrum (Latin), korallion and gorgeia (Greek), crveni koralj (Croatian), mungaa (Hindi), pravala (Sanskrit), il corallo rosso (Italian) |
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| historical aliases | Gorgeia |
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| color | white to reds and pinks |
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| color source | trace amounts of carotene |
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| significant sources | Mediterranean (Italy), Pacific Ocean off the coasts of Japan, China and Taiwan; off the west coast of Africa (Cape Verde Islands) |
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| MOH scale | 3 - 3.5 |
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| care and treatment | Because of coral's softness, it should be stored carefully to avoid scratches. Coral is also porous so it shouldn't come into contact with chemicals -- it can be cleaned with a moist soft cloth. |
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