Shades of black

Dim gray
Color coordinates
Hex triplet	#696969
Source	X11
ISCC–NBS descriptor	Dark gray

Black
Color coordinates
Hex triplet	#000000
Source	X11/By definition
ISCC–NBS descriptor	Black

Black
Common connotations
	Darkness, evil, luxury, mourning
Color coordinates
Hex triplet	#000000
Source	X11/By definition

Short description: Varieties of the color black

Shades of black are colors that differ only slightly from pure black. These colors have a low lightness. From a photometric point of view, a color which differs slightly from black always has low relative luminance. Variations of black include what are commonly termed off-black colors, which may be considered part of a neutral color scheme, usually in interior design as a part of a background for brighter colors. Black and dark gray colors are powerful accent colors that suggest weight, dignity, formality, and solemnity.^[1]

In color theory, a shade is a pure color mixed with black. It decreases its lightness while nearly conserving its chromaticity. Strictly speaking, a "shade of black" is always a pure black itself and a "tint of black" would be a neutral gray. Unlike these, many off-black colors possess a hue and a colorfulness (also called saturation).

Colors often considered "shades of black" include onyx, black olive, charcoal, and jet; these colors and other variations of black are shown below.

Black

Main page: Black

Black
#000000

Black is a color, the perception of which is evoked by the total absence of light that stimulates any of the three types of color sensitive cone cells in the human eye and with very low brightness compared to the surroundings. A black visual stimulation will be void of hue and grayness. Black is the darkest possible color.

Technical black varieties

A black body is an idealized physical body that absorbs all incident electromagnetic radiation (regardless of frequency or angle of incidence). To the human eye, it seems black.

Surface treatments to simulate a black body have been developed throughout history,^[2] though intensive research to approach the ideal black body have emerged mainly in the 21st century. They include:

Variations of black (off-black colors)

The colors are arranged in order of value (brightness) (v code in the hsv code), the lightest colors at the top and the darkest at the bottom.

Dim gray

Dim gray
#696969

The web color dim gray is a dark tone of gray.

The color name dim gray first came into use in 1987, when this color was formulated as one of the colors on the X11 color list, introduced that year. After the invention of the World Wide Web in 1991, these colors became known as the "X11 web colors".

Cool black

Cool black (PMS 295)

Color coordinates
Hex triplet	#002E63
Source	^[Unsourced]
ISCC–NBS descriptor	Very dark blue

Cool black
#002E63

Cool black is a dark shade of blue. It is one of Pantone colors.^[6]

Ebony

Ebony

Color coordinates
Hex triplet	#555D50
Source	Maerz and Paul
ISCC–NBS descriptor	Grayish olive green

Ebony
#555D50

The color ebony is a representation of the color of the wood ebony, a tropical hardwood widely used to make fine furniture, notably for French kings.

The first use of ebony as a color name in English was in 1590.^[7]

Ebony wood

Davy's grey

Davy's gray

Color coordinates
Hex triplet	#555555
Source	ISCC-NBS
ISCC–NBS descriptor	Dark gray

Davy’s Grey
#555555

Davy's gray is a dark gray color, made from powdered slate, iron oxide and carbon black named for Henry Davy.^[8]^[9]

The first recorded use of Davy’s gray as a color name in English was in the 19th century (precise date uncertain).^[10]

Charcoal

Charcoal

Color coordinates
Hex triplet	#36454F
Source	ISCC-NBS
ISCC–NBS descriptor	Dark grayish blue

Charcoal
#36454F

Charcoal is a color that is a representation of the dark gray color of burned wood.

The first recorded use of charcoal as a color name in English was in 1606.^[11]

Charcoal

Outer Space

Outer Space

Color coordinates
Hex triplet	#414A4C
Source	Crayola
ISCC–NBS descriptor	Dark grayish green

Outer Space
#414A4C

The color Outer Space is a metaphorical representation of the color of outer space.

The color Outer Space was formulated by Crayola in 1998.

Taupe

Main page: Taupe

Taupe

Color coordinates
Hex triplet	#483C32
Source	ISCC-NBS
ISCC–NBS descriptor	Dark grayish yellowish brown

Taupe
#483C32

The color displayed at right matches the color sample called taupe referenced below in the 1930 book A Dictionary of Color, the world standard for color terms before the invention of computers. However, the word taupe is currently often used to refer to lighter shades of taupe, and therefore another name for this color is dark taupe.

The first use of taupe as a color name in English was in the early 19th century (exact year is not known).^[12]

Black bean

Bean

Color coordinates
Hex triplet	#3D0C02
Source	Xona.com

Black Bean
#3D0C02

Black bean is a color that resembles black beans. It is the color called bean on the Xona.com Color List, which was formulated in 2001.

Black beans

Black olive

Olive (RAL)

Color coordinates
Hex triplet	#3B3C36
Source	RAL
ISCC–NBS descriptor	Dark grayish olive green

Black Olive
#3B3C36

Black olives on a plate

Black olive a representation of the color of black olives. Also known as olive, color No. 6015, in the RAL color matching system, widely used in Europe.

Onyx

Onyx

Color coordinates
Hex triplet	#353839
Source	Crayola
ISCC–NBS descriptor	Greenish black

Onyx
#353839

The color onyx is a representation of the color of onyx.

This is one of the colors in the Crayola specialty crayon set called "Gem Tones", introduced in 1994.

Black onyx with bands of colors

Jet

Jet

Color coordinates
Hex triplet	#343434
Source	ISCC-NBS
ISCC–NBS descriptor	Black

Jet black (RAL 9005)

Color coordinates
Hex triplet	#0E0E10
Source	RAL Classic
ISCC–NBS descriptor	Black

Jet
#343434

Jet black (RAL 9005)
#0E0E10

The color jet, also called jet black, is a representation of the color of the mineraloid jet.

The first recorded use of jet as a color name in English was in 1450.^[13]

Mourning jewelry: jet brooch, 19th century

An iPhone 7 in Jet Black

Raisin black

Raisin Black

Color coordinates
Hex triplet	#242124
Source	ISCC-NBS
ISCC–NBS descriptor	Black

Raisin Black
#242124

Raisin black is a color that is a representation of the color of black raisins.

Black raisins

Charleston green

Charleston green

Color coordinates
Hex triplet	#232B2B
Source	^[Unsourced]
ISCC–NBS descriptor	Blackish green

Charleston Green
#232B2B

Displayed at right is the color Charleston green.

According to a popular story, the color Charleston green originated after the American Civil War, when the North provided black paint to the South for use in its reconstruction. Charlestonians, i.e., the inhabitants of Charleston, South Carolina, mixed the black with a little bit of yellow and blue and created Charleston green. The earliest known use of the term to describe a dark shade of greenish black is 1953.^[14]

Since this color has a hue code of 180, it is actually an extremely dark shade of cyan. The paint manufacturer Duron/Sherwin-Williams paint color number for "historic Charleston green" is DCR099—the color sample at right was taken from this color swatch (hex code #232B2B), which is on the website accessible called Colors of Historic Charleston:^[15] This color looks black unless the sun hits it just right, and then the color registers a very dark forest green. From Rust-Oleum paint company it is color No. 214086 but still looks black on color cards.

Eerie black

Eerie black

Color coordinates
Hex triplet	#1B1B1B
Source	Crayola
ISCC–NBS descriptor	Black

Eerie Black
#1B1B1B

The color eerie black was formulated by Crayola in the early 2000s as one of the colors in its Heads 'n Tails specialty box of colors.

Licorice

Licorice

Color coordinates
Hex triplet	#1A1110
Source	Crayola
ISCC–NBS descriptor	Black

Licorice
#1A1110

The color licorice (also known as light black) is a representation of the color of licorice candy, which is made from licorice.

Variations of licorice candy

This color was introduced by Crayola in 1994 as one of the colors in its specialty Crayola Magic Scent crayons.

Licorice wheels

References

↑ Pile, John F. Interior Design Upper Saddle River, New Jersey:2007 Prentice-Hall p. 316
↑ Winter, J. and West FitzHugh, E., Pigments based on Carbon, in Berrie, B.H. Editor, Artists’ Pigments, A Handbook of Their History and Characteristics, Volume 4, pp. 1–37.
↑ Bond, Tami C.; Bergstrom, Robert W. (2006-01-01). "Light Absorption by Carbonaceous Particles: An Investigative Review" (in en). Aerosol Science and Technology 40 (1): 27–67. doi:10.1080/02786820500421521. ISSN 0278-6826. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02786820500421521.
↑ "Mini craters key to 'blackest ever black'". Newscientist.com. 6 February 2003. https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn3356-mini-craters-key-to-blackest-ever-black.html.
↑ Theocharous, E.; Deshpande, R.; Dillon, A. C.; Lehman, J. (2006). "Evaluation of a pyroelectric detector with a carbon multiwalled nanotube black coating in the infrared". Applied Optics 45 (6): 1093–7. doi:10.1364/AO.45.001093. PMID 16523768. Bibcode: 2006ApOpt..45.1093T.
↑ "PANTONE 295 C". Pantone. https://www.pantone.com/connect/295-C.
↑ Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York: 1930 McGraw-Hill p. 194
↑ Paterson, Ian (2003), A Dictionary of Colour (1st paperback ed.), London: Thorogood (published 2004), p. 134, ISBN 1-85418-375-3, OCLC 60411025, https://archive.org/details/dictionaryofcolouralexiconofthelanguageofcolourianpaterson_429_e, retrieved 2020-04-15
↑ Eastaugh, Nicholas; Walsh, Valentine; Chaplin, Tracey; Siddall, Ruth (2004), Pigment Compendium: A Dictionary of Historical Pigments, Butterworth-Heinemann, p. 139, ISBN 978-0-7506-5749-5, OCLC 56444720, https://archive.org/details/eastaughetalthepigmentcompendiumadictionaryofhistoricalpigments_429_c, retrieved 2020-04-15
↑ Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York: 1930 McGraw-Hill p. 194; Color Sample of Davy’s Grey: p.. 117 Plate 47 Color Sample A4
↑ Maerz and Paul. A Dictionary of Color. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1930. p. 192; color sample: . 117, plate 47 Color Sample A2 – Charcoal
↑ Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York: 1930 McGraw-Hill p. 205; Discussion of Color Taupe, p. 183; Color Sample of Taupe: p. 55 Plate 16 Color Sample A6
↑ Maerz and Paul. A Dictionary of Color. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1930. p. 197
↑ "'Blitz Painting' To Start Today" (in English). News and Courier (Charleston, South Carolina). April 7, 1953. https://infoweb.newsbank.com/maximus/cache/snippets/sn_highlight_FFFF80_1588490C5C6170CE_2675_3950_423_40_26_230_230.png.
↑ "Duron Paints—Colors of Historic Charleston—Charleston Green". http://www.duron.com/builders/color/color_palettes.asp?id=4.

External links

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[1] Pile, John F. Interior Design Upper Saddle River, New Jersey:2007 Prentice-Hall p. 316

[2] Winter, J. and West FitzHugh, E., Pigments based on Carbon, in Berrie, B.H. Editor, Artists’ Pigments, A Handbook of Their History and Characteristics, Volume 4, pp. 1–37.

[3] Bond, Tami C.; Bergstrom, Robert W. (2006-01-01). "Light Absorption by Carbonaceous Particles: An Investigative Review" (in en). Aerosol Science and Technology 40 (1): 27–67. doi:10.1080/02786820500421521. ISSN 0278-6826. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02786820500421521.

[4] "Mini craters key to 'blackest ever black'". Newscientist.com. 6 February 2003. https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn3356-mini-craters-key-to-blackest-ever-black.html.

[5] Theocharous, E.; Deshpande, R.; Dillon, A. C.; Lehman, J. (2006). "Evaluation of a pyroelectric detector with a carbon multiwalled nanotube black coating in the infrared". Applied Optics 45 (6): 1093–7. doi:10.1364/AO.45.001093. PMID 16523768. Bibcode: 2006ApOpt..45.1093T.

[6] "PANTONE 295 C". Pantone. https://www.pantone.com/connect/295-C.

[7] Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York: 1930 McGraw-Hill p. 194

[8] Paterson, Ian (2003), A Dictionary of Colour (1st paperback ed.), London: Thorogood (published 2004), p. 134, ISBN 1-85418-375-3, OCLC 60411025, https://archive.org/details/dictionaryofcolouralexiconofthelanguageofcolourianpaterson_429_e, retrieved 2020-04-15

[9] Eastaugh, Nicholas; Walsh, Valentine; Chaplin, Tracey; Siddall, Ruth (2004), Pigment Compendium: A Dictionary of Historical Pigments, Butterworth-Heinemann, p. 139, ISBN 978-0-7506-5749-5, OCLC 56444720, https://archive.org/details/eastaughetalthepigmentcompendiumadictionaryofhistoricalpigments_429_c, retrieved 2020-04-15

[10] Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York: 1930 McGraw-Hill p. 194; Color Sample of Davy’s Grey: p.. 117 Plate 47 Color Sample A4

[11] Maerz and Paul. A Dictionary of Color. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1930. p. 192; color sample: . 117, plate 47 Color Sample A2 – Charcoal

[12] Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York: 1930 McGraw-Hill p. 205; Discussion of Color Taupe, p. 183; Color Sample of Taupe: p. 55 Plate 16 Color Sample A6

[13] Maerz and Paul. A Dictionary of Color. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1930. p. 197

[14] "'Blitz Painting' To Start Today" (in English). News and Courier (Charleston, South Carolina). April 7, 1953. https://infoweb.newsbank.com/maximus/cache/snippets/sn_highlight_FFFF80_1588490C5C6170CE_2675_3950_423_40_26_230_230.png.

[15] "Duron Paints—Colors of Historic Charleston—Charleston Green". http://www.duron.com/builders/color/color_palettes.asp?id=4.

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