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Spectral Egypt

#df9c1b
Notes

Spectral Egypt (#DF9C1B) 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 (39°, 78%, 49%) places it in the highly saturated band at a mid lightness. Best used in small doses, like logos, CTAs, focus rings, or highlight text, where its saturation becomes a feature rather than noise. 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
#df9c1b
RGB
rgb(223, 156, 27)
HSL
hsl(39, 78%, 49%)
HWB
hwb(39 11% 13%)
OKLCH
oklch(74.0% 0.149 76.6)
HSV
hsv(39, 88%, 87%)
LAB
lab(69.15% 15.40 68.92)
LCH
lch(69.15% 70.62 77.41)
CMYK
cmyk(0%, 30%, 88%, 13%)

Etymology

Spectral
adjective

Latin spectrum, appearance — adjectival suffix -al. As a color modifier, spectral implies a saturated-and-rainbow-decomposed-and-pure quality, the bright color of Newton-prism sunlight-decomposed seven-color spectrum band. Sits at the bright-and-pure end of the grid, parallel to prismatic and pure in usage.

Egypt
noun

The civilization that established the Western world's earliest sustained color vocabulary — and the warm yellow-tan of Egyptian sandstone, the gold of Tutankhamun's death mask, and the ochre of pharaonic tomb painting. Egypt refers to the desert sand of the Theban necropolis at dawn: a saturated, slightly cool warm yellow-tan with the matte finish of windblown quartz.

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.

#df9c1b
Original
#b59f00
Protanopia
#c4af22
Deuteranopia
#f38a86
Tritanopia
#a1a1a1
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
2.36:1
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
8.91:1

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