Auction Win: Agatized Coral (fan)

Locality: South China Sea

Size: Small Cabinet - 9.4 × 6.7 × 2.5 cm

Agatized coral is a variety of agate or chalcedony (SiO2) that forms when silica replaces the calcium carbonate skeleton of a coral colony, first discovered in the Tampa Bay area around 1825. It was historically used by early humans to make weapons and tools.

The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean, bordered by southern China, Indochina, the Malay Peninsula, Borneo, and the Philippines, and lies at the center of the Indo-West Pacific biogeographic province, which is considered the world’s most diverse shallow-water marine area. It spans approximately 3.3 million km² with depths ranging from the coastal fringe to 5,377 meters in the Manila Trench, and is studded with numerous disputed islets, atolls, and reefs. The region hosts 45 of the world’s 51 mangrove species, most recognized coral genera, and 20 of 50 known seagrass species, making it a critical habitat for marine biodiversity. Coastal nations including China, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Vietnam exert major influence and claim sovereignty over its island groups, which have sparked conflicts due to perceived national rights.