Saff
The directory

Every theme, and what its name means.

All 220 of them across 19 drawers, drawn in their real colours and their real typefaces. 20 are light mode. The same directory is in the app under Settings.

Heritage

38

Cities and empires of the Muslim world, past and living.

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Kiswah

The embroidered black and gold cloth draped over the Kaaba.

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Medina

The Prophet's ﷺ city, and the green of its dome.

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Aqsa

Masjid al-Aqsa in Jerusalem. Islam's first qibla.

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Hyderabad

City of Pearls. Nizami green, pearl, gold.

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Samarkand

A Silk Road city in Uzbekistan, known for its turquoise domes.

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Iznik

A small Turkish town whose blue ceramics line Ottoman mosques.

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Ottoman

Deep reds and gold calligraphy, out of the empire.

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Granada

Home of the Alhambra, and the last Muslim city in Spain.

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Andalus

Al-Andalus. Eight centuries of Muslim Spain.

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Mughal

Dynasty that built the Taj Mahal. Warm sandstone.

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Fez

Morocco's imperial city, where the world's oldest university still runs.

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Timbuktu

Mali's desert city of manuscripts and scholars.

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Sahara

Traders and scholars crossed it to get anywhere.

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Damascus

Lived in continuously for thousands of years. The Umayyad Mosque stands at its centre.

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Aziz Bagh light

A Hyderabadi family estate from 1899. Limewashed ivory, green shutters, ochre stone.

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Lahore

The Badshahi Mosque. Mughal red sandstone, marble, turquoise tile.

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Karachi

Pakistan's port on the Arabian Sea.

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Kashmir

A valley of chinar leaves, saffron fields and lake water.

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Delhi

The Jama Masjid, in red sandstone and marble.

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Dhaka

Deltaic green, and the terracotta of Bengal's mosques.

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Gaza

Olive groves and limestone. Held quietly.

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Aleppo

The citadel and the covered souq, in amber stone.

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Beirut

Mediterranean water at the foot of the cedars.

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Baghdad

The House of Wisdom. Manuscript gold on the Tigris.

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Jakarta

Batik indigo and gold under a tropical sky.

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Bukhara

A brick city on the Silk Road, crowned in turquoise.

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Zanzibar light

Stone Town. Limewashed coral walls and carved teak doors.

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Kairouan

The Great Mosque of Kairouan, founded in the seventh century and still standing.

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Cordoba

The Mezquita, and its red and white arches.

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Marrakesh

Red City. Ochre walls under the Koutoubia.

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Isfahan

Naqsh-e Jahan. They used to say it was half the world.

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Bursa

First Ottoman capital, and its Green Mosque.

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Sinai

A mountain where Musa (AS) spoke with Allah.

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Istanbul

Two continents, one city. Tulip red on Bosphorus blue.

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Cairo

Al-Azhar's city. Brass lanterns and the Nile.

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Abu Dhabi

The Sheikh Zayed Mosque. White marble, gold, turquoise pools.

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Kuala Lumpur

Steel towers over tropical green.

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Sarajevo

Snow white on Bosnian green.

Daylight

16

Light backgrounds, for reading in the sun.

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Daybreak light

Warm cream light, amber and royal blue ink.

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Paper light

White paper, dark ink, one stroke of crimson.

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Porcelain light

Glazed white with deep teal and gold.

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Skylight light

A clear morning sky.

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Mint Cream light

Fresh mint over cream.

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Rose Milk light

That drink. Pink cream with deep rose.

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Lilac Mist light

Pale lavender morning fog.

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Sandstone light

Light desert stone with bronze.

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Citrus light

Lemon cream, deep honey, leaf green.

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Seashell light

Shell white with coral and sea teal.

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Meadow light

Spring green light over deep grass ink.

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Blossom light

White petals, deep magenta.

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Clouds light

White drifting into pale sky blue.

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Vanilla light

Cream and custard with deep gold ink.

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Clay light

Terracotta and sage on cream.

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Grove light

An olive grove at noon. Leaf ink on linen.

Midnight

16

Near-black grounds with one vivid accent.

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Qiyam

Standing for the night prayer. Moonlight on the wall, one lamp still burning.

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Velvet

Black fabric with orchid and gold shimmer.

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Carbon

Carbon fibre. Black with mint and steel.

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Gilded

Covered in gold leaf. Black and gold, nothing else.

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Neon

City lights on ink. Electric cyan and pink.

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Eclipse

Sun hidden. White ring, orange corona.

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Embers

Last coals still going.

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Regalia

Royal violet and mint on pure black.

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Noir Rose

A single rose in a dark room.

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Cosmos

Deep space blue and nebula pink.

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Nocturne

Night music. Forest green on black.

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Lanterns

Ramadan lanterns against the night.

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Ultraviolet

Light just past what the eye can see.

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Cinder

Soft ash red and silver.

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Polar

Arctic night. Ice blue on black.

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Nightbloom

Flowers that only open after dark.

Horizon

8

The band where the sky meets the ground.

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Sahil

Coast. Sunset over water.

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Badiya

Open desert. Dusk over the dunes.

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Sabah

Morning. First light on slate.

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Ramad

Ash. That grey-violet half hour after the sun goes.

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Toprak

Earth, in Turkish. Pine forest against a plum sky.

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Wahaj

A blazing glow. Violet burning down into ember.

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Shams

Sun. Dusk purple sinking into amber.

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Morning Light

Pink and purple as the day opens.

Aurora

8

Curtains of light: green, violet, cold blue.

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Boreal

Northern lights. Green curtains shot through with violet.

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Shafaq

The red afterglow after sunset, which is also the marker jurists use for Isha.

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Qutb

Qutb is the pole. Northern lights wheeling around the pole star.

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Banafsaj

Violet. The flower and the colour, same word.

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Layali

Nights, plural.

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Anwar

Lights, rays.

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Thurayya

Arabic name for the Pleiades.

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Fayruz

Turquoise, the stone and the colour.

Ocean

6

Water at different depths.

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Atoll

A ring of reef around still water.

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Tidepool

What low tide leaves behind.

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Abyss

Deepest part of the sea.

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Kelp

Underwater forests.

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Reef

Coral pink and seafoam over slate.

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Moonbay

Moonlight on a bay. Electric blue and violet.

Garden

6

Growing things, in leaf and bloom.

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Jasmine

In the courtyard, and only open at night.

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Foxglove

A tall purple bell flower.

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Rosewater

What you get distilling roses, and what goes into attar and sweets.

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Juniper

An evergreen. Sage and gold.

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Lavender

A calming purple herb.

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Wisteria

Hanging vine flower, purple over leaf green.

Desert

6

Sand, stone, and the light on them.

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Wadi

A valley that only runs after rain.

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Dune

Hills the wind built.

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Oasis

Water and green, in the middle of none.

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Mirage

A trick of desert light.

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Canyon

Red rock, carved out by water.

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Tucson

A Sonoran sunset. Indigo dusk falling into warm rust.

Mineral

6

Stones and the colours they fracture into.

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Garnet

Deep red, cut since antiquity.

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Malachite

Banded green stone.

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Lapis

Deep blue stone. They used to grind it up for paint.

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Opal

Turn it and the colour moves.

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Rose Quartz

Soft pink crystal.

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Jasper

Earthy red-brown stone.

Gold

10

Warm metal, pale brass to deep amber.

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Honey

Honey held up to sunlight.

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Wheat

Fields at harvest.

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Amber

Fossilised resin. Deep orange-gold.

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Noor

Noor is light. Pale and luminous.

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Hilal

Crescent moon, gold on a navy night.

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Duha

The mid-morning prayer. Morning sky warming into sun gold.

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Saffron

Worth more by weight than gold.

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Ochre

Earth pigment. Painters have never stopped using it.

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Citrine

Yellow quartz.

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Gold Leaf

Hammered gold, the kind that goes on manuscripts and domes.

Teal

10

Between green and blue, where tilework lives.

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Verdigris

The blue-green a copper dome turns after enough weather.

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Cyan

Pure blue-green.

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Seafoam

Pale green of breaking waves.

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Marmara

The sea at Istanbul, sitting between two continents.

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Atlas

Morocco's mountains.

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Bahr

Sea, in Arabic. Deep water with gold on it.

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Khaleej

Gulf. Navy running into gulf green.

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Glacier

Ice melt, with a violet shadow.

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Peacock

Iridescent teal and pink, off the bird.

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Monsoon

Storm season. Sky and rain.

Green

10

Every green that is not a garden or a stone.

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Pine

Dark evergreen.

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Emerald

Precious green stone.

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Jade

Carvers in East Asia have worked this stone for millennia.

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Matcha

Powdered green tea.

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Moss

Soft forest-floor green.

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Zaytun

A blessed tree, in its muted green.

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Sage

Dusty herb green.

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Sidr

The lote tree named in the Quran. Deep and evergreen.

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Cedar

Mountain cedar. Muted forest green over warm bark.

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Bustan

A walled garden or orchard. The word is the same in Arabic and Persian.

Blue

10

Cold light, deep water, open sky.

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Indigo

The dye that travelled the same roads as the manuscripts.

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Cobalt

Mineral behind classic blue glass.

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Sapphire

Royal blue, in gem form.

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Azure

Clear-sky blue.

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Denim

Workwear blue, worn in.

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Arctic

Polar ice.

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Slate

Blue-grey stone.

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Subh

Daybreak, in Arabic. Dawn pink over navy.

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Nahr

River. River blues with peach.

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Ultramarine

Literally beyond the sea, which is where the lapis came from. The blue of illuminated books.

Purple

10

Violet, plum, and the colours of dusk.

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Obsidian

Volcanic glass. Saff's default, and the one everything else is judged against.

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Nebula

A cloud of stars being born.

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Amethyst

Violet quartz.

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Grape

Deep fruit purple.

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Iris

A flower, and the part of the eye that shares its name.

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Twilight

Those purple minutes right after sunset.

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Byzantine

Purple was the empire's royal colour, and it was illegal for anyone else to wear.

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Orchid

An orchid.

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Mauve

First synthetic dye anyone ever made. Soft purple.

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Royal

Purple and gold, the pair kings spent centuries claiming for themselves.

Orange

10

Fire, citrus and terracotta.

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Sand

Warm beach gold.

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Rust

Iron left out in the weather.

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Terracotta

Baked clay. Pots and rooftops.

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Ghurub

Sunset. Orange with a lilac counterpoint.

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Persimmon

Autumn fruit at its brightest.

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Marigold

Strung up by the yard for festivals.

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Papaya

Tropical orange with pink.

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Tangerine

Citrus, set against violet.

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Harvest

Autumn fields. Amber with sage.

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Cinnamon

A spice, and the bark it is peeled from.

Red & Pink

10

Blush to blood, the warm end of the wheel.

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Crimson

Deep classic red.

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Ruby

Red gem.

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Cherry

Dark fruit red.

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Rose

Queen of flowers.

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Aqeeq

Carnelian. The banded orange-red stone set into old rings.

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Murjan

Coral. The Quran mentions it.

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Rumman

Pomegranate, one of the fruits named in the Quran.

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Lily

Blush pink with lily gold.

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Raspberry

Berry bright.

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Henna

The dye that stains skin and cloth a deep brick red.

Neutral

10

No hue to speak of. Structure does the work.

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Sepia

An old photograph, warm brown where you expect grey.

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Ink

Writing ink on paper.

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Stone

Cool mineral grey.

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Khatt

Calligraphy, or the line a pen makes. Parchment tones.

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Layl

Night. The darkest neutral here.

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Sadaf

Mother-of-pearl.

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Noir

Black, in French. Pure black and white and nothing else.

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Linen

Undyed cloth. Warm paper and leather.

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Storm

Grey cloud with a break of pink in it.

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Manuscript

An old page by lamplight. Cream ink and clay on warm black.

Fun

18

Themes from somewhere other than nature.

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Matrix

Black screen, falling green code, monospace.

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Terminal

Amber CRT glow, off an old computer.

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Blueprint

White and cyan lines on architect's blue.

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Arcade

Synthwave. Hot pink and cyan on deep purple.

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Vhs

Tracking-line magenta and cyan on tape black.

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Cocoa

Hot chocolate with cream and marshmallow pink.

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Slime

Toxic lime on swamp green, unapologetically.

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Bricks

Toy-brick yellow and red on navy.

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Watermelon

Rind green melting into the fruit's red and pink.

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Chalkboard

A madrasa board. White and pink chalk on green.

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Vaporwave

The 1980s as remembered by the internet. Hot pink and pool-tile teal.

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Thermal

An infrared heat map, cold violet through to blazing yellow.

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Newsprint light

Black ink on cheap paper, with the red of a second-run press.

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Solarpunk

The optimistic future: sunlight, brass, and things growing on everything.

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Neon Noir

A rain-slicked street at night, electric blue under amber signage.

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Cyberpunk

Acid yellow on black. The colour scheme of a future that went wrong.

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Blacklight

A UV poster in a dark room. Violet glow and fluorescent green.

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Lo-Fi

Dusty plum, soft pink and faded mint, off a chillhop album cover.

Chicago

12

The city, its teams, its flag, its landmarks.

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Midway

Bears colours. Navy and orange, named for the Midway they used to play on.

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Madhouse

The Bulls, red and black, out of the Madhouse on Madison.

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West Madison

The Blackhawks. Same building as the Bulls, red and black with gold.

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South Side

White Sox. Black and silver on the South Side since 1901.

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North Side

Cubs. North side, Wrigleyville blue and red.

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Skyline

Sky colours, off the lakefront. Sky blue and yellow.

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Firehouse

The Fire, named for the one the city rebuilt itself after. Red and light blue.

Maghrib
0:42:07
Jamat 8:35

Six Corners light

City flag. Two blue stripes for the river, four red stars.

Maghrib
0:42:07
Jamat 8:35

Lakefront

Lake Michigan at dawn. Cold water under a warming sky.

Maghrib
0:42:07
Jamat 8:35

The L

Elevated tracks. Weathered steel, rust and rivets.

Maghrib
0:42:07
Jamat 8:35

Ivy

An outfield wall in July, ivy over old brick.

Maghrib
0:42:07
Jamat 8:35

Cloud Gate

The Bean in Millennium Park, chrome holding the whole skyline.

Nothing matches that.