orange embroidered with purple

“In clothing we associate the character of the color with the character of the person. Thus we can observe how single colors and combinations of color are related to complexion, age, and social class. . . .

The Roman emperors were extremely jealous of their purple. The robe of the Chinese emperor is orange embroidered with purple. His servants and members of religious orders are allowed to wear lemon-yellow.”

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, from his Farbenlehre, or Theory of Color, 1808. Translated and edited Douglas Miller, 1988.

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