A vivid red dye and pigment extracted from the dried bodies of female cochineal insects (scale insects native to the tropical and subtropical Americas). Since antiquity, carmine has been used for dyeing textiles and in painting. It was used by the Baroque painters Caravaggio and Rubens, but because it is not very stable in oil paint, its use for painting diminished after better red pigments became available. Web resources here and here. Videos here and here.