Kobe
A dark reddish-brown made from iron oxide pigment
Kobe is a deep, reddish-brown colour, created from iron oxide pigment like Indian red. Its name first appeared in English in 1924, and its colour matches that of sienna, a shade known since the 18th century.
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- Kobe is a dark tone of Indian red.
- It is made from iron oxide pigment.
- First recorded as a colour name in English in 1924.
- Kobe's colour matches that of sienna.
What colour is Kobe?
Kobe is a dark, earthy reddish-brown. It is made using iron oxide pigment, which gives it a muted, natural appearance. The colour sits close to Indian red but is deeper in tone. Kobe is visually identical to the colour known as sienna, sharing the same colour coordinates. Its richness and depth set it apart from brighter reds and lighter browns.
Where does Kobe come from?
The name Kobe for this colour was first recorded in English in 1924. Like Indian red, Kobe is made from iron oxide pigment. The colour itself matches sienna, a name that dates back to 1760. The use of iron oxide pigments has a long history, especially in India, where such earthy reds have been used in art and decoration.
How is Kobe made?
Kobe is produced from iron oxide, a mineral pigment. Iron oxide pigments are created by processing naturally occurring iron-rich minerals. The pigment is ground into a fine powder and used to make paints and other colourants. This method is the same as that used for Indian red and sienna.
Where Kobe is used
Kobe is mainly used in art, where its deep, earthy tone is valued for painting. Like other iron oxide reds, it can be found in artworks that require muted, natural shades. Its similarity to Indian red and sienna means it can be used interchangeably with those pigments.
Brown around the world
What the brown family means from country to country.
Brown is the colour of Nazism in German political speech, after the brown shirts of the party's stormtroopers. To call a view "brown" is to call it far right.
Politics and protestDanger and warningShameSource: SturmabteilungMasi is bark cloth beaten from paper mulberry and printed in brown and black. It is worn at weddings and funerals and given in ceremonial exchanges.
Sacred and holyWeddings and marriageSource: Tapa clothKuntunkuni is a dark brown mourning cloth of the Asante, dyed with tree bark. Adinkra cloth, stamped with symbols, was first made on such dark grounds for funerals.
Mourning and deathSadnessSource: Adinkra symbolsThe batik of the Javanese courts at Yogyakarta and Surakarta is dyed in soga brown with indigo and cream. Some court patterns were once reserved for the royal family.
Royalty and powerPrideSource: BatikBogolanfini, or mud cloth, is cotton painted with fermented river mud in browns, black and white. Hunters wear it for protection, and women after childbirth.
Protection and healingSacred and holySource: B貌g貌lanfiniShades and relatives of Kobe
Kobe is a dark tone of Indian red and is visually identical to sienna. These colours are often confused or used in place of one another. Indian red is slightly lighter, while sienna shares the same colour coordinates as Kobe.
Colours that go with Kobe
Harmonies are worked out from the value #882D17. Contrast ratios follow the WCAG 2 formula.
Questions people ask about Kobe
What colour is Kobe?
Kobe is a deep, reddish-brown shade made from iron oxide pigment. It is darker than Indian red and visually identical to the colour known as sienna.
Where does the name Kobe come from?
The name Kobe as a colour was first recorded in English in 1924. The sources do not state the origin of the name itself.
What is Kobe made from?
Kobe is made from iron oxide, a mineral pigment. This is the same material used for Indian red and sienna.
How is Kobe used?
Kobe is mainly used in art, valued for its deep, earthy tone. It can be used in place of Indian red or sienna in painting.
Good reading and sources
The facts on this page come from the Wikipedia article "Iron oxide red" (the section "Kobe"), written by its contributors and used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence. 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.
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