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Origin of Hawaiian Black Coral Jewelry

 Origins of Hawaiian Black Coral Jewelry

In 1958, Maui Divers, a dive shop based in Lahaina, Maui, discovered Hawaiian black coral beds off the coast at depths of 200 feet in the Molokai Channel. The discovery led the divers, Jack Ackerman and Larry Windley, to test its use in jewelry. 

Divers in the Molokai Channeling measuring and diving for deep sea coral
Polishing Hawaiian black coral revealed an incredible luster, and due to the depths in which this deep-sea coral grew, it was dense, which made it suitable for jewelry. A year later, Maui Divers Jewelry was founded, and Hawaiian black coral jewelry gained so much popularity that it even became Hawaiʻi's official state gem.
Black Coral Jewelry on Womanʻs Chest

History of Deep-Sea Coral in Jewelry

This was not the first time coral would find its place in jewelry. Dating as far back as 400 AD, corals have held a prominent place in the world of adornment, talismans, and jewelry. The Greek, Roman, and Egyptian empires all have historical ties to coral jewelry, and one story in Greek mythology even recounts the origin of red coral. In Hawaiʻi, black coral, also known as "ʻēkaha kū moana," would occasionally wash up on shore, and Hawaiians would traditionally use it for both medicinal purposes (NOAA) and adornment.

Red Coral on Rock

Sources:

  • https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/news/black-corals