Red Coral—The Gemstone of Mars/
the God of War continues...

Corals also precious biogenic material is actually the skeletal remains of a marine polyp. The fleshy skin polyps secrete a carbonic substance from which Coral grows like branches and trees in the warm waters of the ocean at a depth ranging from 20 feet to 1000 feet.

Around 95% of the Coral is made up of Calcium Carbonate, around 3 % of magnesium carbonate and trace elements of iron.

How to identify if the red coral is Natural?
There are two different questions here:
1. Identify if the coral is fully Natural?
2. Identify if the coral has gone through any enhancement.

Is there any DIY (Do It Yourself) home experiment that you can do that will establish the authenticity of coral in both the questions by 100% then the answer is NO? The chemical experiment can give you a fair idea but is it 100% accurate? The answer is no.

Chemical tests for a Red Coral

Since coral is made up of Calcium Carbonate it will react with HCL (Hydrochloric Acid) to give a effervescent bubbling action. Genuine coral shall react with HCL to produce CO2 (Carbon Di-Oxide) and shall react with lime solution to form white limestone.

This chemical reaction is a method to identify a real coral from other materials such as plastic or bone. However in general this test fails to identify reconstituted coral.

What is Reconstituted Coral?

Reconstituted coral is made from low quality coral pulverized and mixed with epoxy-an adhesive, plastic, or other material made from a class of synthetic thermosetting polymers containing epoxide groups. This material is cast into blocks and further undergoes dyeing and then is fashioned in loose stones, artefacts, beads or coral jewellery.

The reconstituted coral shall give the same reaction as the normal coral to acid since it also contains Calcium Carbonate. Most of the commercial coral available in the market belongs to this class. This coral is not natural and has no used in Planetary Gem Therapy

To be continued...