A red or pink dye extracted from certain lichens and used historically in medicines and textiles.
From Latin 'corallium' (coral) based on the dye's color resemblance to coral. The suffix '-in' is used in chemistry to denote organic compounds. The term emerged in medieval and Renaissance medicinal texts as merchants and apothecaries named products by their visual appearance rather than chemical composition.
Before synthetic dyes, 'corallin' was a prized compound extracted from lichens that turned textiles and medicines beautiful shades of coral-red—medieval dyers would have paid enormous sums for consistent batches, making this humble lichen one of antiquity's most valuable trade goods.
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