Asamidori
Pale green with the freshness of young leaves: a light, yellow-tinged spring green whose prefix asa — 'shallow' — signals delicacy rather than depth.
How it was dyed in 927
The Engishiki — the court regulations completed in 927 — records exactly what the palace dyehouse was allotted to dye this color. Quantities are per bolt of cloth; units are left in the original (1 kin ≈ 600 g, 1 shō ≈ 0.7 L in later standards — Heian equivalents are debated).
浅緑 あさみどり Pale green
The Engishiki also gives scaled quantities for: 1 bolt of plain silk · 1 bolt of silk for resist-dyeing · 1 skein of silk thread.
Original text 原文
浅緑綾一疋、藍半囲、黄蘗二斤八両、帛一疋、藍半囲、黄蘗大二斤、纈帛一疋、藍半囲、黄蘗大二斤、糸一絇、藍小半囲、黄蘗大二斤、
Text: 『デジタル延喜式』校訂文（縫殿寮）, National Museum of Japanese History · 1900 printed edition (NDL)
Tints & shades
Harmonies within the tradition
Complementary and triadic companions, chosen from real traditional colors — not computed values.
Similar colors
The namesake
新緑 若葉 — what the name literally points to.
