Hypertext Webster Gateway: "carbuncle"
From Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary (easton)
Carbuncle
(Ex. 28:17; 39:10; Ezek. 28:13). Heb. barkath; LXX. smaragdos;
Vulgate, smaragdus; Revised Version, marg., "emerald." The
Hebrew word is from a root meaning "to glitter," "lighten,"
"flash." When held up to the sun, this gem shines like a burning
coal, a dark-red glowing coal, and hence is called
"carbunculus", i.e., a little coal. It was one of the jewels in
the first row of the high priest's breastplate. It has been
conjectured by some that the garnet is meant. In Isa. 54:12 the
Hebrew word is _'ekdah_, used in the prophetic description of
the glory and beauty of the mansions above. Next to the diamond
it is the hardest and most costly of all precious stones.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Carbuncle \Car"bun*cle\, n. [L. carbunculus a little coal, a
bright kind of precious stone, a kind of tumor, dim. of carbo
coal: cf. F. carboncle. See {Carbon}.]
1. (Min.) A beautiful gem of a deep red color (with a mixture
of scarlet) called by the Greeks anthrax; found in the
East Indies. When held up to the sun, it loses its deep
tinge, and becomes of the color of burning coal. The name
belongs for the most part to ruby sapphire, though it has
been also given to red spinel and garnet.
2. (Med.) A very painful acute local inflammation of the
subcutaneous tissue, esp. of the trunk or back of the
neck, characterized by brawny hardness of the affected
parts, sloughing of the skin and deeper tissues, and
marked constitutional depression. It differs from a boil
in size, tendency to spread, and the absence of a central
core, and is frequently fatal. It is also called
{anthrax}.
3. (Her.) A charge or bearing supposed to represent the
precious stone. It has eight scepters or staves radiating
from a common center. Called also {escarbuncle}.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
carbuncle
n 1: deep-red cabochon-cut garnet cut without facets
2: an infection larger than a boil and with several openings
for discharge of pus
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