DESCRIPTION

Carmine occurs as bright red, friable pieces or as a dark red powder. It is the aluminum or the calcium–aluminum lake, on an aluminum hydroxide substrate, of the coloring principles obtained by an aqueous extraction of cochineal. Cochineal consists of the dried female insects Dactylopius coccus costa (Coccus cacti L.), enclosing young larvae; the coloring principles thus derived consist mainly of carminic acid (C₂₂H₂₀O₁₃). It is soluble in alkali solutions, slightly soluble in hot water, and practically insoluble in cold water and in dilute acids.