cochineal

noun

1. (countable)A scale insect of the species Dactylopius coccus, native to the tropical and subtropical Americas, which lives on prickly pear cacti (genus Opuntia).

   “The Cochineel is an Inſect, bred in a ſort of Fruit much like the Prickle Pear. […] The Silveſter gives a colour almoſt as fair as the Cochineel; and ſo like it as to be often miſtaken for it, but it is not near ſo valuable.”

   “A prodigious quantity of insects of all sorts (but no mosquitoes) assailed us at our evening meal. […] There were some that were larger—earwigs, cochineals, a little mole-cricket, and an enormous mantis. I stuffed a number of them into my poison-bottle.”

   “The red dye—or cochineal red as it is called—is present in the body of cochineals, as is clearly apparent if one of the bugs is accidentally squashed. Cochineals were cultivated for their dye in the New World long before the arrival of the Spaniards. When Hernán Cortés entered Mexico in 1519 he was much taken by the widespread use of red in Aztec culture, and was downright dazzled by the magnificence of Montezuma's [i.e., Moctezuma II's] robe.”

2. (uncountable)A vivid red dye made from the dried bodies of cochineal insects.

   “Or if you can finde the berrie of Cochenile with whiche wee colour Stammelles, or any Roote, Berrie, Fruite, wood or earth fitte for dying, you winne a notable thing fitt for our ſtate of clothing. This Cochenile is naturall in the west Indies on that firme.”

   “Cociniglia, a kinde of rich flie or graine comming out of India to dye ſcarlet vvith, called Cutchenele.”

   “There liues the Sea-oake, in a little ſhel; / There grovves vntill'd the ruddy Cochenel: […]”

   “VVithin a day or tvvo after, vve met a VVest-Indies man of vvarre, of one hundred and ſixtie tuns, a fore noone vvee fought vvith her, and then tooke her vvith one thouſand one hundred Hides, fiftie Cheſts of Cutchanele, foureteene Coffers of vvedges of Siluer, eight thouſand Rialls of eight, and ſix Coffers of the King of Spaines Treaſure, beſides the good pillage and rich Coffers of many rich Paſſengers.”

   “Flo[rez]. Are you the ovvners / Of the ſhip that laſt night put into the Harbour? / 1 Mar[chant]. Both of the Ship, and lading. / Flo. VVhat's the fraught? / 1 Mar. Indico, Quitchineel, choiſe Chyna ſtuffs.”

3. (uncountable)The vivid red colour of this dye.

   “And I to make all knovv, I am not ſhallovv / VVill have my points [i.e., lace] of Cucchineale and yellovv.”

   “These days, I'm an apprentice at a tattoo shop on Sunset. […] I just keep staring at all the ink we have, that wild variety of color, everything from rootbeer, midnight blue and cochineal to mauve, light doe, lilac, south sea green, maize, even pelican black, all lined up in these plastic caps, […]”

adj

1. (not-comparable)Possessing a vivid red colour, as or as if produced from dyeing with cochineal dye (noun sense 2).

   “Batavus [a tulip variety], of somewhat the same shade, was slightly taller, and perhaps with a little more cochineal color.”

   “The principal imports arriving by sea, then as previously, were textiles, among them coarse cotton cloth, known as Surat, the Indian port from which they were shipped, as well as blue cotton cloth and cochineal cloth called kemis, fine cloth from various parts of India, coarse white cotton cloth, and unspun cotton in balls from Yaman.”