Edo era
Crimson Lake & Pine— 臙脂と松葉
The deep lake crimson of cochineal against pine needle green — winter evergreen.
#9E2B3D
red · 1 palette
Enji
臙脂
Crimson lake
About Enji
Enji (臙脂) is a deep, muted red tone. Its hex value is #9E2B3D — that is
RGB 158, 43, 61, or HSL 351°, 57%, 39%.
Crimson lake.
It holds 7.3:1 contrast against white, so Enji works best for body text, headings, and UI labels. (On white it scores 7.3:1; on black 2.9:1.)
Across Sanzo Wada's 1933 Dictionary of Color Combinations, Enji appears in 1 combination — most often paired with Matsuba, Kinari and Kogane.
Colours that go with Enji
From a standard colour wheel, Enji anchors these four classic schemes. Each swatch is computed from its exact hue, so every hex is a real, usable pairing.
Complementary
#9E2B3D #2B9E8C
the hue directly opposite — the highest-contrast pairing, good for a single bold accent.
Analogous
#9E2B3D #9E2B76 #9E532B
the two neighbours on the wheel — a calm, cohesive scheme that feels effortless.
Triadic
#9E2B3D #3D9E2B #2B3D9E
two hues an even third of the wheel away — balanced and lively without clashing.
Split-complementary
#9E2B3D #2B9E53 #2B769E
the two colours either side of the complement — the contrast of a complement, softened.
How to use Enji
Enji is a deep, muted tone (HSL 351°, 57%, 39%), 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 (7.3:1) — safe for paragraphs, buttons and labels. When you do set type on it, use light lettering. Pair it with its complement (#2B9E8C) for a focal accent, or with its analogous neighbours (#9E2B76 and #9E532B) for a quieter, harmonious feel.
Studio
Taking Enji 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.
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-
...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.
Listed on Amazon as Strathmore 300 Series Tape Bound Watercolor Pad, 140 lb. Cold Press, 11 X 15 inches, White, 12 Sheets (360-111)
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Palettes with Enji
Enji appears in 1 combination from the archive. For how usage like this compares across the whole dictionary, see the data analysis of all 348 plates.
Questions about Enji
- What is the hex code for Enji?
- Enji (臙脂) is #9E2B3D. Crimson lake It appears in 1 historical color combination from Sanzo Wada's 1933 "A Dictionary of Color Combinations".
- What does Enji look like on white and black backgrounds?
- Enji (#9E2B3D) has a WCAG contrast ratio of 7.33:1 against white (#FFFFFF) and 2.87:1 against black (#000000). WCAG AA requires 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text.
- Where does the color Enji come from?
- Enji is documented in Sanzo Wada's "A Dictionary of Color Combinations" (1933, Seigensha Art Publishing 2010 reprint). Wada catalogued red pigments and historical Japanese color terms. The source work is in the public domain.
- Can I use Enji in my own design or brand?
- Yes. The color name and hex value (#9E2B3D) 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
- Figma design tokens (W3C-spec JSON, drag into any file)
- Tailwind v4 + v3 configs — drop into any project
- CSS custom properties — every plate, one stylesheet
- 378 SVG plates (348 Wada + 30 editorial) — print-ready at any size
- Full JSON — colors, names, eras, moods, dominant hues
See what's inside
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