RAL and NCS values are nearest equivalents, not official designations.
In Chinese culture, cinnabar is often associated with prosperity and joy, symbolizing good fortune. However, while it represents happiness in the East, it also carries connotations of danger and toxicity in Western contexts due to its mercury content.
The term 'cinnabar' comes from the Latin 'cinnabaris', which itself is derived from the Greek 'kinnabari', referring to the red mercuric sulfide mineral. Cinnabar pigments were widely used in ancient Rome, especially in frescoes, around the 1st century AD, showcasing their enduring appeal throughout history.
Ranked by CIE76 ΔE — the perceptual distance from Cinnabar. Lower ΔE means a closer match (below ~2 is barely distinguishable).
All 27 Oranges →Nine steps of Cinnabar by lightness — from #772818 (darkest) to #F1A292 (lightest). Click any to copy.
Sitting opposite Cinnabar at 190° on the color wheel, these give the highest-contrast pairings.
Curated 5-color combinations featuring Cinnabar.
A 50–900 tonal scale with Cinnabar anchored at 500 — ready to drop into a design system. Click any step to copy.
Works well as text on dark backgrounds; fails on light.
Thresholds: AA needs 4.5:1 (normal text) / 3:1 (large); AAA needs 7:1 / 4.5:1. Large = 18pt+ or 14pt+ bold.
Copy-ready values for CSS, screen and print, plus the extra conversions designers reach for.
color: #E44D2E; color-mix(in srgb, #E44D2E 70%, white) 10°, 80%, 89% 0, 66, 80, 11 14961966 #CC6633 How Cinnabar appears to viewers with the three main types of color blindness (~1 in 12 men, 1 in 200 women). Simulated approximations.