Showa era
Burnt Sienna & Apricot Yellow +1
Plate 198 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Burnt Sienna, Apricot Yellow, Green.
#ae5224
orange · 9 palettes
Burnt Sienna
About Burnt Sienna
Burnt Sienna is a mid-tone, vivid orange tone. Its hex value is #ae5224 — that is
RGB 174, 82, 36, or HSL 20°, 66%, 41%.
It holds 5.2:1 contrast against white, so Burnt Sienna works best for body text, headings, and UI labels. (On white it scores 5.2:1; on black 4.0:1.)
Across Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations, Burnt Sienna appears in 9 combinations — most often paired with Turquoise Green, Violet Blue and Yellow Orange.
Colours that go with Burnt Sienna
From a standard colour wheel, Burnt Sienna anchors these four classic schemes. Each swatch is computed from its exact hue, so every hex is a real, usable pairing.
Complementary
#ae5224 #2480AE
the hue directly opposite — the highest-contrast pairing, good for a single bold accent.
Analogous
#ae5224 #AE243B #AE9724
the two neighbours on the wheel — a calm, cohesive scheme that feels effortless.
Triadic
#ae5224 #24AE52 #5224AE
two hues an even third of the wheel away — balanced and lively without clashing.
Split-complementary
#ae5224 #24AE97 #243BAE
the two colours either side of the complement — the contrast of a complement, softened.
How to use Burnt Sienna
Burnt Sienna is a mid-tone, vivid tone (HSL 20°, 66%, 41%), 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 (5.2:1) — safe for paragraphs, buttons and labels. When you do set type on it, use light lettering. Pair it with its complement (#2480AE) for a focal accent, or with its analogous neighbours (#AE243B and #AE9724) for a quieter, harmonious feel.
Studio
Taking Burnt Sienna off the screen
A hex code is an instruction to a screen, not a colour. Where this one is going decides what it needs next.
-
...onto paper
Start here if the palette gets printed. Screen colour and ink colour are not the same colour, and this is the deck that translates between them.
Listed on Amazon as Pantone GP6102B Color Bridge Guide Set Coated & Uncoated, Multi-Colour
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...onto a screen you can trust
Start here if it stays digital. An uncalibrated monitor is the single most common reason a palette that looked right on your desk looks wrong everywhere else.
Calibrite
ColorChecker Studio spectrophotometer
Listed on Amazon as Calibrite ColorChecker Studio Spectrophotometer for Complete Color Management for Display, Projector, Printer and Scanner Profiling
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...by hand
Start here if you are mixing it. Wada's plates were flat printed colour; gansai pans are the closest everyday medium to them.
Kuretake
Gansai Tambi 24 — Art Nouveau
Listed on Amazon as Kuretake GANSAI TAMBI Watercolor Paint Set 24 Colors II - Art Nouveau
View on Amazon
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Palettes with Burnt Sienna
Burnt Sienna appears in 9 combinations from the archive. Each pairing reveals how the same color shifts character depending on its neighbours. For how usage like this compares across the whole dictionary, see the data analysis of all 348 plates.
Questions about Burnt Sienna
- What is the hex code for Burnt Sienna?
- Burnt Sienna is #ae5224. It appears in 9 historical color combinations from Sanzo Wada's 1933 "A Dictionary of Color Combinations".
- What does Burnt Sienna look like on white and black backgrounds?
- Burnt Sienna (#ae5224) has a WCAG contrast ratio of 5.21:1 against white (#FFFFFF) and 4.03:1 against black (#000000). WCAG AA requires 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text.
- Where does the color Burnt Sienna come from?
- Burnt Sienna is documented in Sanzo Wada's "A Dictionary of Color Combinations" (1933, Seigensha Art Publishing 2010 reprint). Wada catalogued orange pigments and historical Japanese color terms. The source work is in the public domain.
- Can I use Burnt Sienna in my own design or brand?
- Yes. The color name and hex value (#ae5224) are factual data — not copyrightable. Our curation and descriptions are CC BY 4.0 licensed.
From the archive
Support the archive The full catalog, on your disk, as a thank-you.
- All 378 palettes (348 Wada + 30 editorial) in five formats
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- Full JSON — colors, names, eras, moods, dominant hues
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