A hard calcareous, marine production, produced by the labors of millions of insects, and often resembling in figure the stem of a plant, divided into branches. It is of various colors, black, white, and red. The latter is the most valuable. It is ranked by Job 28:18, and Eze 27:16, among precious stones. It abounds in the Red sea; and the islands of the South seas are often coral reefs, covered over with earth. The word "rubies" in Pr 3:15; 8:11; 20:15; 31:10, is thought by many to mean ornaments of coral.
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American Tract Society Bible Dictionary
A Dictionary of the Holy Bible, American Tract Society, c. 1859, edited by W. W. Rand.