What does "carmine" mean?

Carmine: A beautiful pigment, or a lake, of this color, prepared from cochineal, and used in miniature painting.

Additional senses

  1. 2.(Chem.) The essential coloring principle of cochineal, extracted as a purple-red amorphous mass. It is a glucoside and possesses acid properties; -- hence called also carminic acid. Carmine red (Chem.), a coloring matter obtained from carmine as a purple-red substance, and probably allied to the phthaleïns.

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