Showa era
Pale Lemon Yellow & Blackish Olive
Plate 109 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Pale Lemon Yellow, Blackish Olive.
#42533e
green · 3 palettes
Blackish Olive
About Blackish Olive
Blackish Olive is a deep, near-neutral green tone. Its hex value is #42533e — that is
RGB 66, 83, 62, or HSL 109°, 14%, 28%.
It holds 8.3:1 contrast against white, so Blackish Olive works best for body text, headings, and UI labels. (On white it scores 8.3:1; on black 2.5:1.)
Across Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations, Blackish Olive appears in 3 combinations — most often paired with Pale Lemon Yellow, Light Brownish Olive and Dusky Green.
Colours that go with Blackish Olive
As a deep near-neutral, Blackish Olive sits comfortably beside almost any accent — the schemes below show the subtle, reliable pairings from a standard colour wheel.
Complementary
#42533e #4F3E53
the hue directly opposite — the highest-contrast pairing, good for a single bold accent.
Analogous
#42533e #4D533E #3E5344
the two neighbours on the wheel — a calm, cohesive scheme that feels effortless.
Triadic
#42533e #3E4253 #533E42
two hues an even third of the wheel away — balanced and lively without clashing.
Split-complementary
#42533e #443E53 #533E4D
the two colours either side of the complement — the contrast of a complement, softened.
How to use Blackish Olive
Blackish Olive is a deep, near-neutral tone (HSL 109°, 14%, 28%), which makes it a grounding background or strong accent. For text it passes WCAG AA for body text against a light background (8.3:1) — safe for paragraphs, buttons and labels. When you do set type on it, use light lettering. Pair it with its complement (#4F3E53) for a focal accent, or with its analogous neighbours (#4D533E and #3E5344) for a quieter, harmonious feel.
Palettes with Blackish Olive
Blackish Olive appears in 3 combinations from the archive. Each pairing reveals how the same color shifts character depending on its neighbours.
From the archive
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