Ruby (color) explained

Ruby
Hex:	E0115F
Source:	Maerz and Paul^[1]
Isccname:	Vivid red

Ruby is a color that is a representation of the color of the cut and polished ruby gemstone and is a shade of red or pink.

Origins

The first recorded use of ruby as a color name in English was in 1572.^[2]

Variations

Rubine red

Rubine Red
Hex:	D10056
Isccname:	Vivid red

Displayed at right is the Pantone color rubine red.

Ruber

Ruber
Hex:	CE4676
Source:	ISCC-NBS
Isccname:	Vivid purplish red

The color ruber is displayed to the right.

Medium ruby

Medium Ruby
Hex:	AA4069
Source:	Crayola
Isccname:	Moderate purplish red

Medium ruby is the color called ruby in Crayola Gem Tones, a specialty set of crayons introduced by the Crayola company in 1994.

Ruby red

Ruby Red
Hex:	9B111E
Source:	RAL
Isccname:	Vivid red

Displayed at right is the color ruby red.

This is one of the colors in the RAL color matching system, a color system widely used in Europe. The RAL color list originated in 1927, and it reached its present form in 1961.

Big dip o'ruby

Big Dip O'Ruby
Hex:	9C2542
Source:	Crayola
Isccname:	Deep red

Displayed at right is the color big dip o'ruby.

Big dip o'ruby is one of the colors in the special set of metallic Crayola crayons called Metallic FX, the colors of which were formulated by Crayola in 2001.

This is supposed to be a metallic color. However, there is no mechanism for displaying metallic colors on a flat computer screen.

Antique ruby

Antique Ruby
Hex:	841B2D
Source:	ISCC-NBS
Isccname:	Deep red

At right is displayed the color antique ruby.

The first recorded use of antique ruby as a color name in English was in 1926.^[3]

The color antique ruby is a dark tone of ruby.

Deep ruby

Deep Ruby
Hex:	843F5B
Source:	BS 381
Isccname:	Dark purplish red

Displayed at right is deep tone of ruby that is called ruby in the British Standards 381 color list. This color is #542 on the 381 color list. The 381 color list is for colors used in identification, coding, and other special purposes. The British Standard color lists were first formulated in 1930 and reached their present form in 1955.

In nature

The ruby-throated hummingbird (Archilochus colubris) is a small hummingbird. It is the only species of hummingbird that regularly nests east of the Mississippi River in North America.
The ruby seadragon (Phyllopteryx dewysea) is a marine fish in the family Syngnathidae, which also includes seahorses. It inhabits the coast of Western Australia. The species was first described in 2015, making it only the third known species of seadragon, and the first to be discovered in 150 years.
The ruby snapper (Etelis carbunculis) is a species of fish that lives in Australia.^[4]
Infrared light in the portion of the spectrum where it is still visible to humans (out to approximately 1050 nanometers) appears ruby red. Starting at about 660 nm in the visible red, a monochromatic source such as an LED or laser begins to look very slightly purplish, gradually becoming more so as the wavelength increases. Below about 900 nm, the color is more purple than red, similar to some of the color samples on this page.

Notes and References

The color displayed in the color box above matches the color called ruby in the 1930 book by Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York:1930 McGraw-Hill; the color ruby is displayed on page 35, Plate 6, Color Sample G6.
Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York:1930 McGraw-Hill Page 203; Color Sample of Ruby: Page 35 Plate 6 Color Sample G6
Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York:1930 McGraw-Hill Page 189; Color Sample of Antique Ruby: Page 35 Plate 6 Color Sample L6
Web site: Etelis carbunculus. 2020-09-04. fishesofaustralia.net.au.