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Carnation

A heraldic colour for skin tones and sometimes pink details

No single value: Carnation is a material, and its colour varies. The background shows its family, pink and magenta.

Heraldic tincture shield, carnation
Photo: MarieLoeise, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Carnation is a colour term in heraldry used for the shade of human skin. It appears more often in French and German coats of arms than in English-speaking countries, where it can also stand for a pinkish hue in certain designs.

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  • Carnation stands for skin colour in heraldry.
  • It is more common in French and German coats of arms.
  • In English heraldry, carnation can also mean a pink shade.
  • Used for human figures and sometimes pink details in crests.

What colour is Carnation?

Carnation is a special colour used in heraldry, mainly to show the shade of human skin. While it is not often found in coats of arms from English-speaking regions, it is more common in continental Europe, especially in France and in German traditions. Sometimes, carnation is used for pink elements in heraldic designs, not just for skin.

Where does Carnation come from?

The name 'carnation' in heraldry refers to the colour of flesh. Its use is more established in European heraldry, particularly in France, and comes from the tradition of representing skin tones in coats of arms. The term is less familiar in English-speaking heraldry, where it is seldom seen.

Where Carnation is used

Carnation is mainly seen in coats of arms, where it is used to paint human figures or details that call for a skin tone. In some rare cases in English heraldry, it can also be used for pink decorations, such as feathers or trappings on animals. Examples include the crests of certain professional and trade organisations.

What Carnation means

Carnation does not have a set symbolic meaning in heraldry. Its main purpose is to show skin colour in human figures, rather than to represent an idea or emotion. In some cases, it is simply used as a pink shade for decorative details.

Pink around the world

What the pink and magenta family means from country to country.

馃嚘馃嚭 Australia

The third day of the New Year's Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground is Jane McGrath Day. The crowd wears pink to raise money for breast cancer nurses.

Protection and healingHopeSource: McGrath Foundation
馃嚝馃嚪 France

Toulouse is called la Ville Rose, the pink city, for the soft pink brick of its old buildings.

Nature and renewalSource: Toulouse
馃嚘馃嚪 Argentina

The president's office in Buenos Aires is the Casa Rosada, the Pink House. A popular story says its paint once had ox blood mixed in, though this is not proven.

Politics and protestSource: Casa Rosada
馃嚙馃嚞 Bulgaria

The Rose Valley near Kazanlak grows pink damask roses for rose oil. The harvest in late May and June is marked by a festival and the crowning of a Rose Queen.

Nature and renewalFestival and celebrationJoySource: Rose Valley, Bulgaria
馃嚞馃嚜 Georgia

In November 2003 protesters entered parliament carrying roses, and the president resigned without bloodshed. The change of power is called the Rose Revolution.

Politics and protestHopeSource: Rose Revolution
馃嚠馃嚦 India

At Holi, the spring festival of colours, friends and strangers smear each other with gulal, a coloured powder. Pink and red gulal are the best known shades.

Festival and celebrationJoySource: Holi

More on what pink and magenta means

Shades and relatives of Carnation

Carnation can sometimes be confused with other pinks or flesh tones in heraldry. Its exact shade may vary, as heraldic colours are not always strictly defined, and the term may cover a range of light pink or skin-like hues.

Questions people ask about Carnation

What colour is carnation in heraldry?

Carnation is used for the colour of human skin in heraldic art, and may also be used for pink details in some designs.

Where does the name 'carnation' come from?

In heraldry, 'carnation' refers to the colour of flesh, and is used to show skin tones in coats of arms.

Is carnation common in coats of arms?

Carnation is rare in English-speaking countries' heraldry but appears more often in France and in German heraldic traditions.

Does carnation have a special meaning?

Carnation is mainly used to show skin colour and does not have a set symbolic meaning in heraldry.

Good reading and sources

Where this page comes from

The facts on this page come from the Wikipedia article "Carnation (tincture)", written by its contributors and used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence, and from its Wikidata record (CC0). Rang rewrote the text in its own words, with AI assistance, and compares every page with the article to make sure no passage is copied. It may be reused under the same CC BY-SA 4.0 licence with a link back.

It may contain mistakes. The swatch is an approximation: named colours are not fixed standards, and every screen shows them a little differently. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-03.

More of the pink and magenta family

All of pink and magenta
Pink and magenta Rose A bright pink colour used as a heraldic tincture in Canada since the late 1900sHeraldic colour #FF80C0 Pink A light tint of red, named after the pink flower and used in art, fashion, and cultureBasic colour #FF00FF Magenta A purplish-pink colour named after a battle and key to modern printingNamed shade 路 馃嚝馃嚪 France +4 Pink and magenta Basic fuchsine A magenta dye used in biology and textile staining since the 19th centuryPigment #FF0080 Rose A bright colour halfway between red and magenta on the colour wheelNamed shade #FA8072 Salmon A warm pink-orange shade named after the flesh of the salmon fishNamed shade #DE3163 Cerise A dark pink named after the French word for cherryNamed shade #997A8D Mountbatten pink A muted pink-grey once used as naval camouflage in World War IINamed shade

More colours tied to France

The colours of France
#FFFF00 Yellow A primary colour between green and orange, seen in sunlight, leaves, and pigmentsBasic colour 路 馃嚝馃嚪 France +5 #800080 Purple A cool colour between red and blue, long linked with royalty and rarityBasic colour 路 馃嚤馃嚙 Lebanon +5 Brown Terracotta A clay-based material and colour, known for its reddish-brown toneColour named from nature 路 馃嚠馃嚦 India +4 Blue Azurite A deep blue copper mineral once prized as a pigment and gemstonePigment 路 馃嚝馃嚪 France +5

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

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