- 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.
Definition
[ n.]