Introduction

There are actually very few colors that are truly unique, despite the appearance that color is just an arbitrary component of design and that many of the same tints may be found in an infinite variety of hues. The following 14 colors are among the rarest in the world, which makes them particularly valuable to designers and artists seeking to employ genuinely distinctive hues.

This list will provide you some inspiration if you’re trying to find the most distinctive and uncommon colors. Though by no means exhaustive, this list features some of the most intriguing colors to have emerged in recent memory. The world’s 10 rarest colors are listed here.

1. Lapis Lazuli

• Color Family – Blue
• Source – Mines in northeast Afghanistan
• Color Code – #26619C

Most lapis lazuli comes from mines in northeastern Afghanistan; however, a sizable amount was also produced from mines in Russia, west of Lake Baikal. Other sources of lapis lazuli include mines in Pakistan, Canada, Italy, the United States, and Mongolia; additionally, the Andes mountains in Chile are a good source as well, as this is where the Incas sourced their material for jewelry and artifacts. Contact metamorphism causes them to emerge as a crystalline marble.

Although lapis lazuli is a combination of minerals and compounds, “Lazurite” accounts for 25–40% of the mineral content. Lapis is made up of pyrite (metallic yellow), sodalite (blue), and calcite (white). Diopside, in a small percentage of Lapis augite.It contains enstatite, mica, hauynite, hornblende, nosean, and sulfur-rich löllingite.

2. YInMn Blue

• Color Family – Blue
• Source – trigonal bipyramidal coordination environment conditions in the chromophore
• Color Code – #2E5090

The hue YinMn Blue is an artificially created blue pigment that is not found in nature. It can only exist in the chromophore when certain environmental parameters are met, such as those seen in a trigonal bipyramidal coordination environment.

Ferroelectric YInO3 and antiferromagnetic YMnO3, which were produced at 1,093 °C (2,000 °F), are the sources of YlnMn Blue. The entire process was accidental, and the result was a vivid blue substance. The pigment’s basic formula, YIn1−xMnxO3, may have its hue changed by adjusting the In/Mn ratio.

3. Prussian Blue

• Color Family – Blue
• Source – Oxidation of Ferrous Ferrocyanide salts
• Color Code – #003153

Ferrous ferrocyanide salts are oxidized to produce prussian blue. Their formula is M 2Fe [Fe (CN)6], where M+ is either Na+ or K+.Since all of the iron in this substance is ferrous, the differing valency is the reason for the absence of rich color. Prussian blue and ferricyanide are produced when hydrogen peroxide or sodium chloride are used to oxidize the white solid.

Because lattice defects are sensitive, Prussian Blue can be hydrated to varying degrees as water molecules mix with the structure to occupy cation vacancies, which is why it is so notoriously inconsistent. Another reason for its inconsistency might be its low solubility, which causes precipitation to happen quickly without giving it time to reach equilibrium.

4. Tyrian Purple

• Color Family – Purple
• Source – mucus of several species of Murex snail.
• Color Code – #630330

The pigment known as tyrian purple is made from the mucus of certain Murex snail species. These snails employ their secretion as an antibacterial lining on their egg masses and as a means of seducing prey as part of their predatory activity. This mucus is also released by the snail in response to physical contact or provocation from humans. After that, the color is extracted via a labor-intensive process known as “milking.”

The dye is mostly found in predatory snails found in the eastern Mediterranean Sea and off the Atlantic coast of Morocco. It is secreted by the hypobranchial gland as mucus. These are the spiny dye-murex, Bolinus brandaris, a marine gastropod.

5. Carmine

• Color Family – Deep Red
• Source – cochineal insect
• Color Code – #960018

The insects that give off the color carmine are known as cochineals (Dactylopius coccus) and Porphyrophora species (Armenian and Polish cochineals). These insects also create the acid known as “carminic acid.”

The corpses of cochineal insects are boiled in a solution of ammonia and sodium carbonate to produce carmine color. The insoluble material is then removed, and the recovered material is combined with alum. This helps the fluid precipitate into a solid, which is also referred to as “Carmine Lake.” To enhance the color of the precipitate, some chemicals are applied.

6. Dragon’s Blood

• Color Family – Bright Red
• Source – Calamus Spp
• Color Code – #BB0A1E

The Dragon Blood Pigment is produced from rattan palms in the genus Calamus of the Indonesian islands, as well as from calamus resins and Dracaena cinnabari, which is found alone or in groups in a particular area (Socotra). Even now, dragon’s blood resins made of calamus and dracaena are frequently sold.Calamus is a unique species belonging to the palm family Aceraceae. It consists of unique individual organisms that indirectly create male or female gametes.

7. Brazilwood

• Color Family – Natural Red
• Source – Caesalpinia trees
• Color Code – #95562A

Brazilwood is derived from flowering Caesalpinia trees, which come in numerous species. The two species that dyers are most familiar with are brazilwood (C. echinata from Brazil) and sappanwood (C. sappan from Asia), which are both known for producing the red dye brazilin. With one exception—brazilwood has one fewer hydroxy group than hematoxylin in logwood—the chemical characteristics, or structure, of the two materials are extremely comparable.

8. Cadmium Pigments

• Color Family – Yellow, Orange, and Red
• Color Code – #E30022, #ED872D, #FFF600

The group of hues known as cadmium colors is made up of cadmium. The majority of cadmium produced globally is used in rechargeable nickel-cadmium batteries, which are thereafter replaced by different types of rechargeable nickel-chemistry cells, such NiMH cells.

Even minute amounts of cadmium can be fatal to humans and other animals, especially when inhaled.

9. Fulvous

• Color Family – Brownish Yellow
• Source – Scientific Binomials of Several Species
• Color Code – #E48400

The word “fulvous,” which comes from the Latin “fulvus,” can be understood in a variety of scientific binomials and can provide information about their color. Fulvous is sometimes described as being tawny, brownish yellowish, or dull orange in hue. It has a beige, butterscotch, and buff appearance. It is applied to as many animal species as possible, particularly bird species, primarily due to the way they look.

SOURCES :-

Birds

• Fulvous Parrotbill
• Fulvous Owl
• Fulvous Babbler
• Fulvous wren
• Fulvous whitening ducks
• breasted woodpeckers
• breasted flatbill
• Fulvous chested jungle fly

Reptiles

• Thamnophis fulvus

Mammals

• Fulvous harvest mouse
• Fulvous pygmy rice rat
• Fulvous bellied climbing rat
• Fulvous round leaf bat
• Cephalopholis fulva
• Starksia fulva

Invertebrates

• Fulvous dawn fly
• Fulvous forest skimmer
• Nylanderia fulva
• Aphaenogaster fulva

Fungi

• Libellula fulva
• Passalora fulva

Prokaryotes

• Paecilomyces fulva

Plants

• Pseudomonas fulva
• Plagiobothrys fulvus
• Chrysopogon fulvus
• Hemerocallis fulva
• Iris fulva
• Polyscias fulva

10. Glaucous

• Color Family – bluish – green
• Source – epicuticular wax coating on mature plum
• Color Code – #6082B6

The word glaucous comes from ancient Greek and means blue-green or blue-grey. The look of certain plants and birds is mostly described with it. This botanical name translates to “covered in grey,” as in a waxy, white coating. Its color coordinates are (96, 130, 182) for sRGB (r, g, b) and (216°, 47%, 71%) for HSV (h, s, v).

The epicuticular wax coating known as “glaucous colors” is present on mature plums and is a characteristic of several cacti, including grapes (Vitis vinifera). The camouflage effect of certain birds and marine and terrestrial creatures’ blue-grey disguising coloring helps them blend in with their surroundings. Their waxy composition also prevents leaves, stems, and other vegetation from climbing.