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lost color lists
48 turns to 64
krayola kolor notes
prefluorescence
cray o dentifier
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| lost color lists |
| (bring back gold ochre!) |
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6/24/04.....v2.6 at http://www.crayola.com/colorcensus/history/chronology.cfm Crayola lists the 8 basic colors available when the brand began in 1903...then they skip ahead to 1949 and the classic Baby Boomer (BB) 48-count box, and the 1958 64-count...what happened during the intervening 46 years?...just 8 colors available all that time?...WELL HARDLY!...there are dozens of colors and color names that pre-date the BB 48/64 line-up...recently, a woman selling an early 50's 48-count was puzzled when nearly half of the crayon names in her box were nowhere to be found on Crayola's color chronology...2 years ago i stood in her shoes, hence the creation of the LosT ColorS ProjecT...but first, 3 important definitions for talking about crayon colors: COLOR NAME...the name printed on the wrapper...some crayons have no color name...(some have no wrapper!)... APPARENT COLOR...color of the physical wax crayon as you look at it...can't be trusted when comparing colors... TRUE COLOR...color that comes out on paper when you color with it...always will appear in brackets [...] 1958 is the turning point...with the introduction of the 64-count box, then the biggest to date, Crayola revised and reorgainzed both its color names and true colors...the color names remained unchanged for the next 32 years, with the exception of FLESH/PEACH in 1962...(interestingly, 1957-58 saw an aborted attempt to rename FLESH as PINK BEIGE)...so as of 1958, over 70 color names, used at one point or another since 1903, were no longer being used...this site lists all that have been found so far, along with known wrapper generations...but what of the true colors?...how consistant have they been, box to box, year to year, decade to decade, both before and after 1958?...this is a complex but fascinating story, one i am still unravelling...some results follow the color name lists below... *************************** WRAPPERS the dark band with the swirly line is called by Crayola a "serpentine"...it is the trademark of Crayolas, and is in fact officially trademarked by them...it does not appear until wrapper type 2...the traditional serpetine design uses 2 black shapes, placed close together and with curved edges, to form the wiggly swirl between them...it is in essence a white swirl on a black band...an earlier form (type 2A) has a white swirl on a WHITE band...this was made by OUTLINING both the swirl and the band with black lines...in other words: a straight black line, then 2 curvy black lines, then another straight black line...this created a design with lots of white areas separated by black lines, giving it a very "busy" appearance...it's little wonder they quickly changed it to a simpler and more elegant version...altho first with white dots at regular intervals along the black sections (type 2B)... NO SERPENTINE - RECTANGLE AROUND PRINTING type 0....no oval..."crayola" all caps, middle of wrapper... NO SERPENTINE - NO RECTANLGE type 1...no oval..."crayola" all caps, in quotes, bottom of wrapper... type 2....no oval..."crayola" all caps, bigger C&A, in quotes, bottom of wrapper... EARLY SERPENTINE - WHITE ON WHITE type 3A...no oval..."crayola": all caps, bigger C&A, in quotes EARLY SERPENTINE - WHITE ON BLACK, w/WHITE DOTS type 3B...no oval..."crayola": all caps, bigger C&A, in quotes MODERN SERPENTINE - WHITE ON BLACK type 3...no oval..."crayola": all caps, bigger C&A, in quotes type 4...scalloped oval, color name w/in..."crayola": all caps, bigger C&A type 4A...scalloped oval, color name above..."crayola": all caps, bigger C&A type 5...smooth oval, color name w/in..."crayola": all caps, same size type 6...smooth oval, color name above..."crayola": all caps, same size type 7...similar to type 6..."crayola": thin cap C, others lower case type 8...similar to type 7..."crayola": fat cap C, others lower case type 9...similar to type 8, but "swash" below "crayola" & web-address RIGHT/LEFT...prior to type 4, wrappers read correctly when the pointed end of the crayon is pointing right...starting with type 4 (the introduction of the oval), when pointing left...types 1 and 2 are known both with and without color names... TYPE 0 NOTE: several varieties of this first Crayola wrapper exist, differing in the contruction of the rectangle and the wording...earlier wrappers read "NEW YORK AND PARIS"...later, just "NEW YORK"...other textual variations include: FOR STUDIO AND SCHOOL USE...or...ARTISTS' SKETCHING CRAYON...or...STUDIO AND SCHOOL CRAYON/FOR EDUCATIONAL COLOR USE (2 lines)...rectangle variations include: made of dots...made of thin curvy lines, with or without corner square...made of thick straight lines, with or without corner square... SPECIAL NOTE ON TYPE 0...this is the style on the postage stamp...notice on the stamp there is a single line at the top of each wrapper, where the serpentine would be...as described above, this line is in fact one end of a rectangle that surrounds the printed material on the wrapper...it does not circle the crayon as a serpentine would...so if you rotated any of the crayons shown on the stamp, you would get to a point where there would be no line...thus, for the stamp, they LINED THEM ALL UP THE SAME WAY (!!!)...and if you look closely, you'll see 2 different styles of rectangle... TYPE 4 NOTE: there is a version with "made in u.s.a." beneath oval, instead of in it... so far it is known only on large or "jumbo" crayolas...(type 4j)... TYPE 7 NOTE: in 1976, Binney & Smith moved its corporate headquarters from New York City to Easton, Penn., and so either city can be found on this wrapper...also at this time, the color-name type-face was changed to what exists today...briefly, vowels were made less wide, and note especially the "g"...New York version is like an "8" with a loop descender...Easton version is like a "9" with a hook descender... TYPE 8 NOTE: 2 versions exists...the main difference: earlier wrappers read "Binney & Smith Inc."...later shortened to just "Binney & Smith"... TYPE 9 NOTE: the new current style, but as of 8/02 not all colors have changed over... RUBENS WRAPPERS...this was a sub-brand of Crayolas that began in 1908 and was initially marketed towards artists, not children...Rubens wrappers were printed vertically, with a picture of the artist, the name "Crayola", and a band at the bottom containing the color name...the boxes were light yellow with red printing, also featured a drawing of the artist, and came in 18- and 24-count lineups...unlike other Binney & Smith brands, like Besco, Crayolet, and Perma, Rubens were definitely Crayolas...the word "Crayola" appears on all Rubens boxes, so their colors are listed here, as "type R"...eventually, the 24-count boxes switched to regular Crayola wrapper types, while retaining the Rubens name and portrait on the box...(the portrait, but not the name, survived to 1957 with the 48-count box)... MUNSELL CRAYOLA WRAPPERS...in 1905, artist and art teacher Prof. A. H. Munsell developed a method to describe colors...his system, and the company he founded to market it, still exist today (http://www.munsell.com)...it should not surprise you that Crayola and Munsell collaborated on sets of crayons...the largest included black, gray, and 20 other colors...in the lists, they are wrapper "type M" and in style they resemble types 1 & 2...interestingly, these Munsell colors apparently did not duplicate "regular" Crayola colors, since all were used for the rare 52-count sets of the late 30's/early 40's, with Crayola wrapper types 4 & 4A...and these evovled into the old-48 lineup that began in 1949... YOUNG ARTISTS...before the idea that little hands needed bigger crayons, crayons made for younger children were SMALLER...the Young Artists Crayolas were mini-crayons, with a wrapper style similar to type 0, in the lists "type Y"...they are among the earliest Crayolas as not only New York and Paris, but also London and Hamburg appear on the box, which is not of typical Crayola style, featuring instead a young girl at an easel ...(some regular Crayolas were also sold with this illustration and the 4 cities mentioned, presumably before what Crayola considers their "first" box, which supposedly went on sale in 1903, yet features a gold medal from the Louisiana Purchase Exposition that clearly reads MCMIV = 1904...yes, aka the St. Louis World's Fair, it did take place in 1904, and the medal was awarded for dustless chalk, not wax crayons...) LOST & CLASSIC COLOR LISTS...w/known wrapper types CLASSIC color names are those used for the 64-count box in 1958...LOST color names are those no longer in use as of 1958...there are 66 classic color names (64 + the replaced FLESH & PRUSSIAN BLUE) and at least 73 lost color names...(altho LIGHT BLUE is listed as a lost color, the only examples i've seen are from the earliest 64-count...) some parts of the color names listed below may, on the actual wrapper, be abbreviated and/or reversed, as ENG. VERMILLION...YELLOW MEDIUM...CHR. GREEN L....color names do not appear on the Young Artists (type Y) wrapper...in its place is a number, such as "no. 22"...the color name is then indicated by number on the front of the box... LosT ColoR NameS... AZURE BLUE......5, 6 BRILLIANT ROSE......5, 6 BURNT UMBER......R, Y, 0 CARMINE......3, 4A CARMINE RED......5, 6 CELESTIAL BLUE....Y, 4A CERULEAN BLUE......5, 6 CHARCOAL GREY......Y CHROME BLUE......R CHROME GREEN......R CHROME GREEN DARK......R, Y CHROME GREEN LIGHT......R, Y, 0 CHROME GREEN MEDIUM......R, Y CHROME YELLOW......R CHROME YELLOW MEDIUM......R COBALT BLUE......R, Y, 2, 3, 4A, 5, 6 DARK BLUE......R, 0 DARK GREEN......R, 0, 3, 4, 5, 6 DARK RED......R, 5, 6 ENGLISH VERMILLION......R, Y, 2, 3 FLESH TINT......R, Y, 4A, 4j GAMBOGE YELLOW......4A (reg size hex) GOLD OCHRE......R, 0, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 GOLDEN OCHRE......Y LIGHT BLUE.....6 LIGHT GREEN......R, 2, 3, 5, 6 LIGHT MAGENTA......5, 6 LIGHT TURQUOISE BLUE......5, 6 LIGHT YELLOW......R, 0, 3, 5, 6 MADDER LAKE......R, Y, 3 MAXIMUM BLUE......M, 4A MAXIMUM BLUE-GREEN......M, 4A MAXIMUM GREEN......M, 4A MAXIMUM GREEN-YELLOW......M, 4A MAXIMUM PURPLE......M, 4A MAXIMUM PURPLE-BLUE......M, 4A MAXIMUM RED......M, 4A MAXIMUM RED-PURPLE......M, 4A MAXIMUM YELLOW......M, 4A MAXIMUM YELLOW-RED......M, 4A MEDIUM BLUE......5, 6 MEDIUM GREEN......R, 0, 3 MEDIUM ORANGE......5, 6 MEDIUM RED VIOLET......5, 6 MEDIUM ROSE......5, 6 MEDIUM VIOLET......5, 6 MEDIUM YELLOW......R, Y, 3, 4A, 5, 6 MIDDLE BLUE......M, 4 MIDDLE BLUE-GREEN.....M, 4, 5, 6 MIDDLE GRAY......M MIDDLE GREEN......M, 4A MIDDLE GREEN-YELLOW......M, 4A MIDDLE PURPLE......M, 4A MIDDLE PURPLE-BLUE......M, 4A MIDDLE RED......M, 4A MIDDLE RED-PURPLE......M, 4A MIDDLE YELLOW......M, 4A MIDDLE YELLOW-RED......M, 4A NEUTRAL GRAY.....4, 5 PERM. GERANIUM LAKE......R PERMANENT MAGENTA......R PINK......0, 4 PINK BEIGE......6 PURPLE......Y, 0 PURPLE (SPECIAL)......R ROSE.......4 ROSE PINK......R, Y, 2, 3, 4, 4j, 5, 6 ULTRAMARINE BLUE......R, Y, 3 VAN DYKE BROWN......Y VENETIAN RED......R, 4A VENETIAN RED LIGHT......Y VENETIAN RED DARK......Y VERMILLION....R, 0 ClassiC ColoR NameS...PRE-64-COUNT BLACK......R, M, Y, 0, 2, 3, 4, 4j, 5, 6 BLUE......R, 0, 2, 3, 4, 4j, 5, 6 BLUE GREEN......4, 4j, 5, 6 BLUE VIOLET......4, 4j, 5, 6 BROWN......R, 0, 2, 3, 4, 4j, 5, 6 BURNT SIENNA......R, Y, 0, 2, 3, 4, 4j, 5, 6 FLESH......5, 6 GOLD......6 GRAY......5, 6 GREEN......R, 0, 2, 3, 4, 4j, 5, 6 *INDIAN RED......R, Y, 4A, 5, 6 *LAVENDER......5, 6 LEMON YELLOW......Y, 6 MAGENTA......R, 4A, 4j, 5, 6 MAHOGANY......5, 6 OLIVE GREEN......R, Y, 0, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 ORANGE......R, Y, 0, 2, 3, 4, 4j, 5, 6 PRUSSIAN BLUE......R, Y, 0, 3, 4, 5, 6 *RAW SIENNA......Y, 6 *RAW UMBER......R, Y, 5, 6 RED......R, 0, 2, 3, 4, 4j, 5, 6 RED ORANGE......4, 4j, 5, 6 RED VIOLET......4, 4j, 5, 6 SALMON......5,6 *SEPIA......4, 6 SILVER......5, 6 TURQUOISE BLUE......4, 4j, 5, 6 VIOLET......R, 0, 2, 3, 4, 4j, 5, 6 VIOLET (PURPLE)......6 WHITE......R, Y, 0, 3, 4, 4j, 5, 6 YELLOW......R, 0, 2, 3, 4, 4j, 5, 6 YELLOW GREEN......4, 4j, 5, 6 YELLOW ORANGE......4, 4j, 5, 6 *=Crayola claims these didn't exist until 64-count in 1958...wrongo!... ClassiC ColoR NameS...INTRODUCED WITH 64-COUNT APRICOT, AQUAMARINE, BITTERSWEET, BLUE GRAY, BRICK RED, BURNT ORANGE, CADET BLUE, CARNATION PINK, COPPER, CORNFLOWER, FOREST GREEN, GOLDENROD (aka GOLDEN ROD), GREEN BLUE, GREEN YELLOW, MAIZE, MAROON, MELON, MIDNIGHT BLUE, MULBERRY, NAVY BLUE, ORANGE RED, ORANGE YELLOW, ORCHID, PEACH (1962), PERIWINKLE, PINE GREEN, PLUM, SEA GREEN, SKY BLUE, SPRING GREEN, TAN, THISTLE, VIOLET BLUE, VIOLET RED... *************************** what happened to these lost colors?...according to Crayola's current party line, colors are either RENAMED, "only 3 times in history" as of INDIAN RED/CHESTNUT...or RETIRED, namely the controversial 8 in 1990, said to be the "first time" any were...but since the lost color names are no longer with us, it must be assumed ALL were either renamed or retired...are there any other choices in the Crayola universe?...here are some case histories... >>> NEUTRAL GRAY was renamed GRAY in the 1950's... the true color remained unchanged...several other true colors were renamed as the 48-count expanded to become the classic 64, including ROSE PINK >> CARNATION PINK... LIGHT YELLOW >> LEMON YELLOW... MEDIUM YELLOW >> GOLDENROD... DARK RED >> MAROON... GOLD OCHRE >> MAIZE... LIGHT GREEN >> SEA GREEN...DARK GREEN >> FOREST GREEN... >>> the true color [flesh], as FLESH TINT, FLESH, and PEACH, has remained fairly consistant over the years, altho today's is lighter & brighter than the BB shade, as is the case with many classic colors...one interesting oddity is an orangy peach in a 64-count purchased in 1970, wrapper type 6...preliminary observations suggest this true color exists today as APRICOT, having replaced the darker [apricot] sometime between then and now... >>> LAVENDER was introduced by name in the 48-count in 1949 (the true color was one of the earlier Munsells...MIDDLE PURPLE)...but at the time, it was a bluish color, different from the pinkish color LAVENDER became in 1958...today, this [old lavender] is back as PURPLE MOUNTAIN'S MAJESTY...altho, a type 6 lavender exists with a pale periwinkle true color...i have no idea where it fits in...yet!... >>> the twisted tale of VIOLET...you probably won't believe it, until you actually color with the crayons, and see it is indeed true...simply stated: when wrapper type 5 was introduced, the true color of VIOLET was changed!...the older, redder color was temporarily retired, replaced by a bluer shade...then, in 1958, this new violet was renamed BLUE VIOLET...what WAS blue violet was renamed VIOLET BLUE...and the old violet returned again as VIOLET...so while VIOLET BLUE was a new color name in 1958, its true color was much older, and not a new color at all...it should also be noted that as Crayola has used color-names since wrapper type 5, compound colors are best described by the second color...thus BLUE VIOLET is more purply, and VIOLET BLUE is more bluish...BLUE VIOLET, as it existed since wrapper type 3, really was more blue than purple, so this weird triple switch in 1958 in fact made perfect sense!...but wow... >>> so yes, there are other choices in the Crayola universe, like ASSUMED IDENTITY...2 other such switches also came about in 1958, when MIDDLE BLUE GREEN was renamed BLUE GREEN and the darker [blue green] retired...likewise, the fluorescent BRILLIANT ROSE was renamed MAGENTA, the non-fluorescent [magenta] going bye-bye... BUT IN GENERAL...the picture that is emerging is that relatively few true colors were ever discontinued...most were either given a completely new color-name, or or took the name of another true color, which itself may have been renamed...as with violet et al above...more to come...CRAYOLA FOREVER!!!...---stolf--- <><><><><><><><><> BLAME HALLMARK!!!! <><><><><><><><><> |
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