Showa era
Sepia & Veronia Purple
Plate 24 from Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations — Sepia, Veronia Purple.
#644b1e
orange · 2 palettes
Sepia
About Sepia
Sepia is a deep, muted orange tone. Its hex value is #644b1e — that is
RGB 100, 75, 30, or HSL 39°, 54%, 25%.
It holds 8.2:1 contrast against white, so Sepia works best for body text, headings, and UI labels. (On white it scores 8.2:1; on black 2.6:1.)
Across Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations, Sepia appears in 2 combinations — most often paired with Veronia Purple, Yellow Orange and Taupe Brown.
Colours that go with Sepia
From a standard colour wheel, Sepia anchors these four classic schemes. Each swatch is computed from its exact hue, so every hex is a real, usable pairing.
Complementary
#644b1e #1E3764
the hue directly opposite — the highest-contrast pairing, good for a single bold accent.
Analogous
#644b1e #64281E #5A641E
the two neighbours on the wheel — a calm, cohesive scheme that feels effortless.
Triadic
#644b1e #1E644B #4B1E64
two hues an even third of the wheel away — balanced and lively without clashing.
Split-complementary
#644b1e #1E5A64 #281E64
the two colours either side of the complement — the contrast of a complement, softened.
How to use Sepia
Sepia is a deep, muted tone (HSL 39°, 54%, 25%), which makes it a grounding background or strong accent. For text it passes WCAG AA for body text against a light background (8.2:1) — safe for paragraphs, buttons and labels. When you do set type on it, use light lettering. Pair it with its complement (#1E3764) for a focal accent, or with its analogous neighbours (#64281E and #5A641E) for a quieter, harmonious feel.
Palettes with Sepia
Sepia appears in 2 combinations from the archive. Each pairing reveals how the same color shifts character depending on its neighbours.
From the archive
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