Puce

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This article is about the color. For the school, see Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador.
Puce
 
About these coordinates     Color coordinates
Hex triplet#CC8899
HSV       (h, s, v)(345°, 33%, 80%)
sRGBB  (r, g, b)(204, 136, 153)
Source99colors.net
ISCC–NBS descriptorDark pink
B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte)
H: Normalized to [0–100] (hundred)

Puce is a dark red or purple brown color,[1] a brownish purple[2] or a "dark reddish brown."[3]

Etymology[]

Puce is the French word for flea. The color is said to be the color of bloodstains on linen or bedsheets, even after being laundered, from a flea's droppings, or after a flea has been crushed.

The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) dates the first English use of "puce" as a color to 1778.[4] The name comes from the French word puce, or flea, which comes from the Latin word for flea, pulex (stem pulic-). According to the Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, the first French use of puce as a color name, meaning flea-color, dates to the 17th century.[5] A different source dates the first French use of puce as a color name to the 14th century.[6]

History[]

The color puce became popular in the late 18th century in France. It appeared in clothing at the Court of Louis XVI, and was said to be a favorite color of Marie Antoinette, though there are no portraits of her wearing it.[7][8][9]

Puce was also a popular fashion color in 19th-century Paris. In one of his novels, Émile Zola described a woman "dressed in a gown of a dark color...between puce and the color of goose poop (caca d'oie)."[10] Victor Hugo wrote in Les Misérables, "[...] Mademoiselle Baptistine gentle, slender, frail, somewhat taller than her brother, dressed in a gown of puce-colored silk, of the fashion of 1806, which she had purchased at that date in Paris, and which had lasted ever since."[11]

Variations of puce[]

Puce (ISCC-NBS)[]

Puce (ISCC-NBS)
 
About these coordinates     Color coordinates
Hex triplet#722F37
HSV       (h, s, v)(353°, 59%, 45[12]%)
sRGBB  (r, g, b)(114, 47, 55)
SourceISCC-NBS
ISCC–NBS descriptorDark red
B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte)
H: Normalized to [0–100] (hundred)

The color to the right is the color called puce in the ISCC-NBS Dictionary of Color Names (1955). Since this color has a hue code of 353, it is a slightly purplish red.

Puce (Maerz and Paul)[]

Puce (M&P)
 
About these coordinates     Color coordinates
Hex triplet#A95C68
HSV       (h, s, v)(351°, 46%, 66[13]%)
sRGBB  (r, g, b)(169, 92, 104)
SourceMaerz and Paul
ISCC–NBS descriptorModerate red
B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte)
H: Normalized to [0–100] (hundred)

The color box to the right shows the color called puce in the 1930 book by Maerz and Paul, A Dictionary of Color;[14] the color puce is displayed on page 37, Plate 7, Color Sample H4.

Puce (Pourpre color list)[]

Puce (Pourpre color list)
 
About these coordinates     Color coordinates
Hex triplet#4E1609
HSV       (h, s, v)(11°, 89%, 31 [15]%)
sRGBB  (r, g, b)(78, 22, 9)
SourcePourpre.com
ISCC–NBS descriptorDeep brown
B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte)
H: Normalized to [0–100] (hundred)

At right is the color called puce in the Pourpre.com color list, a color list widely popular in France. This is the original puce, from which all other tones of puce ultimately derive.[citation needed]

Puce (Pantone)[]

Puce (Pantone)
 
About these coordinates     Color coordinates
Hex triplet#4F3A3C
HSV       (h, s, v)(354°, 27%, 31[16]%)
sRGBB  (r, g, b)(79, 58, 60)
SourcePantone TPX[17]
ISCC–NBS descriptorDark grayish reddish brown
B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte)
H: Normalized to [0–100] (hundred)

The color at right is called puce in the Pantone color list.

The source of this color is the "Pantone Textile Paper eXtended (TPX)" color list, color #19-1518 TPX—Puce.[18]

In popular culture[]

  • In the vintage-bottle-collecting hobby, "puce" is amongst the most desirable colors.[19]
  • In the King Arthur legends, Sir Gareth fights Sir Perymones, who is called "The Puce Knight".[20][21]
  • In Santa Claus: The Movie (1985), Jeffrey Kramer's character, Towser, picks the color puce for the color of Patch the Elf's (Dudley Moore) lollipop. He describes the color as "like fuchsia, but a shade less lavender and a bit more pink." He also mentions to his boss, B.Z. (John Lithgow) that if the lollipop is a success, the company can come out with a "Puce Juice".
  • In an episode of The Golden Girls, Blanche thinks she's pregnant after taking a pregnancy test. She shows it to the other, and Rose remarks she once had drapes the same colour and refers to it as puce.
  • In the movie Monsters, Inc., Mike instructs Sulley to leave the puce folder behind when filing paperwork on his behalf.[22]

See also[]

  • List of colors

References[]

  1. ^ Oxford English Dictionaries on-line
  2. ^ Webster's New World Dictionary, Third College Edition: "a brownish purple."
    - Random House College Dictionary: "a dark or brownish purple,"
  3. ^ "Brun rouge assez foncé." Le Petit Robert (1988).
  4. ^ "puce" in Oxford English Dictionary, 3rd ed,
  5. ^ The Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, (1966) Oxford University Press
  6. ^ Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York:1930 McGraw-Hill Page 202; Color Sample of Puce: Page 37 Plate 7 Color Sample H4--the color sample shown as puce in Maerz & Paul is a tone of puce halfway between the U.S. and U.K. versions of puce: Puce (Maerz & Paul)
  7. ^ Clair, Kassia St (2017-10-24). The Secret Lives of Color. Penguin. ISBN 978-1-5247-0494-0.
  8. ^ "The Sexy-Gross Story of Puce". The Awl. Retrieved 2020-09-04.
  9. ^ Moonlight, Under The (2020-07-14). "Puce Was Once The Height Of 18th Century French Fashion For A Second". Under The Moonlight. Retrieved 2020-09-04.
  10. ^ "Vétue d'une robe sobre...entre le puce et le caca d'oie." Le Petit Robert.
  11. ^ Wikisource:Les Misérables/Volume 1/Book Second/Chapter 2
  12. ^ web.forret.com Color Conversion Tool set to hex code #722F37 (Puce Red):
  13. ^ web.forret.com Color Conversion Tool set to hex code #A95C68 (Deep Puce):
  14. ^ Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York: 1930 McGraw-Hill
  15. ^ web.forret.com Color Conversion Tool set to hex code #4E1609 (French Puce):
  16. ^ web.forret.com Color Conversion Tool set to hex code of color #4F3A3C (Dark Puce):
  17. ^ Type the word "Puce" into the indicated window on the Pantone Color Finder and the color appears.
  18. ^ Pantone TPX Pantone Color Finder--Type the word "Puce" into the indicated window on the Pantone Color Finder and the color appears:
  19. ^ von Mechow, Tod (September 30, 2010). "Bottle Attributes – Beer Bottle Colors". Soda & Beer Bottles of North America. Retrieved October 18, 2011.
  20. ^ Smith, Bret (December 25, 2008). "Paladin (Part 3C) – The Knights of the Round Table (con't)". The Grumblin' Grognard. Retrieved December 3, 2011.
  21. ^ Search result, Puce Knight: Sir Thomas Malory; Keith Baines (October 12, 2001). Malory's Le Morte D'Arthur: King Arthur and the Legends of the Round Table : The Classic Rendition. Penguin. pp. 146, 147, 149, 152, 159. ISBN 978-0-451-52816-2. Retrieved December 3, 2011.
  22. ^ "Monsters, Inc. Billy Crystal: Mike". IMDB. Retrieved 2021-05-03.
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