Kermes

noun

1. A red dyestuff once prepared from the dried bodies of various female scale insects of the genus Kermes.
2. Short for kermes-mineral, or, more properly, mineral kermes.
3. A red dyestuff consisting of the dried bodies of the females of one or two species of Coccus, especially C. ilicis, an insect found on various species of oak in countries bordering on the Mediterranean.
4. [capitalized] [NL,] A genus of Coccinæ erected by Targioni-Tozzetti.
5. The dried bodies of the females of a scale insect (Kermes ilices formerly Coccus ilicis), allied to the cochineal insect, and found on several species of oak near the Mediterranean; also, the dye obtained from them. 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.