Caput Mortuum
An intense dusty red with heavy weight
Caput Mortuum is an intense, dusty red that carries a heavy, serious weight. Because it is so muted and dark, it functions best as a supporting tone rather than a dominant background. Pair it with soft creams or warm grays to soften its gloomy edge. The hex code for this moody color is #592720, which provides excellent contrast against white text in UI designs.
About Caput Mortuum
Dried rose petals pressed in an old book
What does caput mortuum mean?
It commonly calls to mind dried roses, old leather, dark soil, rusted iron, and late autumn decay. Its low lightness and muted saturation make it feel heavy, subdued, and settled rather than bold or bright.
Where you see caput mortuum
- dried rose petals
- rust
- dark leather
- red clay soil
- old brick
- chestnuts
What it works for
It works well as an accent wall color, a leather tone, a wine label shade, or a grounding red in autumn palettes.
What colors go with caput mortuum?
Sage Green #9caf88Muted green sits opposite on the wheel and echoes its earthy, dusty character.Cream #fffdd0A light neutral lifts its darkness and lets the red undertone read clearly.Mustard #ffdb58Warm yellow shares its dullness and deepens the autumn mood without clashing.Dusty Rose #b56f76Close in hue and equally muted, it softens the weight of this shade.Charcoal #36454fA dark neutral keeps the mood somber and gives the red a firm anchor.
Questions about Caput Mortuum
What is the hex code for Caput Mortuum?
Caput Mortuum is #592720. In RGB that is rgb(89, 39, 32), in HSL hsl(7, 47%, 24%) and in CMYK 0%, 56%, 64%, 65%.
How can I use Caput Mortuum effectively in web design?
Caput Mortuum functions best as a supporting tone or accent color rather than a dominant background. Because it is so dark and muted, it works beautifully to provide excellent contrast against clean white text or to ground lighter cream elements in a layout.
Does #592720 lean warm or cool?
This color carries a distinctly warm, earthy feeling despite its gloomy, serious weight. Its dusty red undertones are best balanced by warm gray or soft, neutral tones which keep the visual experience from feeling too heavy or oppressive in a composition.
Is Caput Mortuum readable on white or black?
Caput Mortuum has a 12.09:1 contrast ratio on white and 1.73:1 on black. WCAG asks for 4.5:1 for body text and 3:1 for large text, so on white it works for body text and on black it is too faint for text. Try other pairs in the contrast checker.