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Gleaming Atlas Goldenrod

#d9ab2c
Notes

Gleaming Atlas Goldenrod (#D9AB2C) is a true amber with a vibrant character. It holds its own as a focal accent, carrying visual weight without tipping into neon territory. Its HSL profile (44°, 69%, 51%) 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 azure. For something softer, pull in its analogous neighbors on either side of the wheel.

HEX
#d9ab2c
RGB
rgb(217, 171, 44)
HSL
hsl(44, 69%, 51%)
HWB
hwb(44 17% 15%)
OKLCH
oklch(76.3% 0.144 87.2)
P3
color(display-p3 0.8227 0.6776 0.2812)
HSV
hsv(44, 80%, 85%)
LAB
lab(72.27% 5.24 66.42)
LCH
lch(72.27% 66.62 85.49)
CMYK
cmyk(0%, 21%, 80%, 15%)

Etymology

Gleaming
adjective

The progressive participle of gleam, to shine intermittently. Used as a color word for hues with the slight optical motion of a polished or wet surface. Gleaming gold, gleaming red: the implication is luminance combined with the optical impression of specular highlight. Sits in the bright-and-glossy corner alongside lustrous.

Atlas
modifier

Greek Ἄτλας, Titan-bearing-the-heavens. As a color modifier, atlas implies a Titan-bearing-heaven-and-globe-bearer quality, the visual register of Farnese-Atlas-and-Titanomachy-Atlas hand-Titan-bearing-heaven-and-globe-bearer Farnese-Atlas-and-Titanomachy-Atlas-and-Hellenistic-marble atlas-and-Titan-bearing-heaven surfaces under Farnese-Atlas-and-Titanomachy-Atlas-and-Hellenistic-marble Naples-museum-and-celestial-globe globe-bearer-light. Sits at the modifier-and-myth end of the grid, parallel to titan and zeus in usage.

Goldenrod
noun

Solidago, the late-summer wildflower of North American meadows whose tall sprays of small yellow flowers signal the end of the growing season. The color refers to the flower head at full bloom: a warm, slightly muted yellow-orange with the matte finish of small clustered florets. Cooler than mustard, deeper than dandelion. The state flower of Kentucky and Nebraska, a pollinator magnet, and the original native dye for early American homespun.

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

Click any swatch to explore

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.

#d9ab2c
Original
#c0aa0e
Protanopia
#cbb633
Deuteranopia
#ec9b93
Tritanopia
#acacac
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).
Failon White
2.14:1
The quick brown foxSample body text at normal size. The wcag minimum for body contrast is 4.5:1 (AA) or 7:1 (AAA).
AAAon Black
9.81:1

Wide gamut

Display P3 representation

The CSS Color 4 wide-gamut form of this color. Both swatches render the same color on every display — the P3 form only diverges from sRGB when a designer pushes channels outside sRGB's reach.

sRGB hex
sRGB hex
##D9AB2C
Display P3
Display P3
color(display-p3 0.8227 0.6776 0.2812)
P3 has subtle headroomOKLCH chroma 0.144

Moderately saturated colors gain a small bump in P3 — the difference is usually visible side-by-side on wide-gamut hardware but won't change the character of the color.

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