Edo era
Madder Red & Evergreen— 茜と常磐
The rooted red of madder-dyed cotton set against enduring pine green.
#B23B3B
red · 1 palette
Akane
茜
Madder red
About Akane
Akane (茜) is a mid-tone, muted red tone. Its hex value is #B23B3B — that is
RGB 178, 59, 59, or HSL 0°, 50%, 46%.
Madder red.
It holds 5.9:1 contrast against white, so Akane works best for body text, headings, and UI labels. (On white it scores 5.9:1; on black 3.6:1.)
Across Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations, Akane appears in 1 combination — most often paired with Tokiwa, Suna-iro and Sumi.
The story of Akane
Akane (茜) is the warmer, slightly orange-leaning red dyed from madder root (Rubia akane) — one of the oldest organic dyes used continuously in Japan. Archaeological evidence places its use back to the Yayoi period. Where kurenai is the crimson of the court, akane is the red of everyday cloth and folk textiles: kimonos for daughters, theatre costumes, traditional wedding accessories.
It reads as warm, settled, and connected to specifically human craft tradition rather than to formal authority. Modern usage: warmth-driven brands, craft and food packaging, anywhere the brief asks for 'rich red but not corporate red.' Madder is also one of the few traditional dyes that has been continuously cultivated commercially, so the colour has an unbroken contemporary lineage.
Working note: Classic pairing is with evergreen — the 'red and green' of Japanese textile combinations, without the holiday connotations of the Western pairing.
Colours that go with Akane
From a standard colour wheel, Akane anchors these four classic schemes. Each swatch is computed from its exact hue, so every hex is a real, usable pairing.
Complementary
#B23B3B #3BB2B2
the hue directly opposite — the highest-contrast pairing, good for a single bold accent.
Analogous
#B23B3B #B23B77 #B2773B
the two neighbours on the wheel — a calm, cohesive scheme that feels effortless.
Triadic
#B23B3B #3BB23B #3B3BB2
two hues an even third of the wheel away — balanced and lively without clashing.
Split-complementary
#B23B3B #3BB277 #3B77B2
the two colours either side of the complement — the contrast of a complement, softened.
How to use Akane
Akane is a mid-tone, muted tone (HSL 0°, 50%, 46%), which makes it a versatile mid-tone for accents, buttons or blocks. For text it passes WCAG AA for body text against a light background (5.9:1) — safe for paragraphs, buttons and labels. When you do set type on it, use light lettering. Pair it with its complement (#3BB2B2) for a focal accent, or with its analogous neighbours (#B23B77 and #B2773B) for a quieter, harmonious feel.
Palettes with Akane
Akane appears in 1 combination from the archive.
From the archive
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