We report the fabrication and magnetic coercive field of oriented epsilon-Fe2O3 nanorods. Oriented epsilon-Fe2O3 nanorods embedded in SiO2 matrix were obtained by a sol-gel method under an applied external magnetic field. The longitudinal axis, which corresponds to a-axis of the crystal structure of epsilon-Fe2O3 nanorods, was oriented parallel to the direction of external magnetic field. The sample achieved a magnetic coercive field along the longitudinal axis of 23.4 kOe, which is the largest value among metal oxide-based magnetic materials. The shape of the magnetic hysteresis loop is well understood by considering the magnetization rotation process and the uniaxial magnetic anisotropy. (c) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.