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Gladiatorial Morn Crimson

#bd2e31
Notes

Gladiatorial Morn Crimson (#BD2E31) is a true red with a warm character. It leans warm, pulling light toward red, orange, and yellow. Naturally inviting, it suits editorial and hospitality contexts. Its HSL profile (359°, 61%, 46%) places it in the balanced band at a mid lightness. It works across type, buttons, and borders, saturated enough to feel deliberate but balanced enough to not fight the rest of the palette. For a confident two-color system, pair it with its complementary cyan. For something softer, pull in its analogous neighbors on either side of the wheel.

HEX
#bd2e31
RGB
rgb(189, 46, 49)
HSL
hsl(359, 61%, 46%)
HWB
hwb(359 18% 26%)
OKLCH
oklch(52.8% 0.180 24.9)
HSV
hsv(359, 76%, 74%)
LAB
lab(42.76% 56.12 33.58)
LCH
lch(42.76% 65.40 30.90)
CMYK
cmyk(0%, 76%, 74%, 26%)

Etymology

Gladiatorial
adjective

Latin gladiātōrius, of the gladiator — adjectival suffix, derived from gladius (short-sword). As a color modifier, gladiatorial implies a saturated-and-combative-and-bloody quality, the deep-rich color of Roman-Colosseum gladiator-arena bloody-tunic-and-shield combat-attire. Sits at the bold-and-formal end of the grid, parallel to spartan and valiant.

Morn
modifier

Old English morgen, morning. As a color modifier, morn implies an early-light-and-dew quality, the visual register of English-pasture-and-meadow early-morning dew-soaked-grass-and-mist atmospheric soft-low-light surfaces under early-morning meadow light. Sits at the modifier-and-time end of the grid, parallel to day and dawn in usage.

Crimson
noun

From the Old Spanish cremesin, itself from the Arabic qirmiz — the kermes scale insect, dried and ground into a brilliant carmine dye prized in the medieval Mediterranean. For centuries the most expensive red on a draper's shelf, reserved for cardinals, kings, and the cloth that gave English the word crimson. Cooler than scarlet, deeper than rose; the color of pomegranate seeds and a serious occasion.

Closest matches

The nearest named color in three reference sources, ranked by perceptual distance (ΔE76 in CIELAB). ΔE < 1 is imperceptible to most viewers; ΔE > 10 is clearly different. When two sources point to the same hex they’re merged into one tile; click any to open that color’s page.

Variations

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Harmonies

Accessibility

Color-vision simulation

How this color appears to viewers with the four major color-vision-deficiency types. Computed via the Machado (2009) physiologically-based model. If a tile matches the original, the color reads the same to that viewer.

#bd2e31
Original
#595130
Protanopia
#7d702c
Deuteranopia
#d00031
Tritanopia
#4d4d4d
Achromatopsia
WCAG contrast

The color used as foreground text against pure white and pure black, with the contrast ratio and WCAG 2.1 grade. Aim for AA (4.5:1) for body text and AA Large (3:1) for 18 pt+ headlines; AAA (7:1) is the gold standard for long-form reading surfaces.

The quick brown foxSample body text at normal size. The wcag minimum for body contrast is 4.5:1 (AA) or 7:1 (AAA).
AAon White
5.84:1
The quick brown foxSample body text at normal size. The wcag minimum for body contrast is 4.5:1 (AA) or 7:1 (AAA).
AA Largeon Black
3.60:1

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