kermes

Noun

Meaning

The dried bodies of the females of a scale insect (Coccus ilicis), allied to the cochineal insect, and found on several species of oak near the Mediterranean. They are round, about the size of a pea, contain coloring matter analogous to carmine, and are used in dyeing. They were anciently thought to be of a vegetable nature, and were used in medicine.

A small European evergreen oak (Quercus coccifera) on which the kermes insect (Coccus ilicis) feeds.

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Examples

Barber (1991), pp. 230–231 Kermes from oak trees was later used by Romans, who imported it from Spain. Source: Internet

For the wealthy, the dye used was kermes, made from a tiny scale insect which fed on the branches and leaves of the oak tree. Source: Internet

Scarce dyestuffs that produced brilliant and permanent colors such as the natural invertebrate dyes Tyrian purple and crimson kermes were highly prized luxury items in the ancient and medieval world. Source: Internet

The cochineal in Mexico was closely related to the Kermes varieties of Europe, but unlike European Kermes, it could be harvested several times a year, and it was ten times stronger than the Kermes of Poland. Source: Internet

For those with even more money there was Polish Cochineal ; also known as Kermes vermilio or "Blood of Saint John", which was made from a related insect, the Margodes polonicus. Source: Internet

It made a more vivid red than ordinary Kermes. Source: Internet

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