Crimson & Teal & Sky Blue

Crimson is the Turkish flag — the deep vivid crimson of the flag of Turkey (Türk bayrağı — Turkish flag — also known as the 'Al bayrak' — the red flag, or 'Ay yıldız' — the moon and star). The Turkish flag: a white crescent and star on a deep crimson-to-red ground — the specific red specified in Turkish flag law is a distinctive deep crimson-to-scarlet, consistent across all official representations. The historical origin of the crescent-and-star emblem: the crescent moon (hilal) and star (yıldız) were symbols of the city of Constantinople (Byzantium) long before the Ottoman conquest — the crescent was associated with the moon goddess Hecate, a patron of ancient Byzantium, and appears on coins of the city from approximately the 4th century BCE. The Ottoman adoption: the crescent-and-star combination became the primary symbol of the Ottoman Empire (particularly from the late 18th century, when the Ottoman military began standardizing regimental flags incorporating the crescent). The current Turkish flag: adopted in its current form at the proclamation of the Turkish Republic on October 29, 1923, by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk — the flag law (Türk Bayrağı Kanunu) was formally passed in 1936. The crimson ground: the deep crimson-red of the Turkish flag is one of the most recognizable flag colors in the world — the specific tone (approximately Pantone 186 C — a vivid, slightly orange-shifted crimson-to-scarlet) is associated with the Turkish national identity, the Ottoman military tradition, and the Republican tradition. Teal is the Turquoise Coast depth — the dark vivid teal of the Aegean and Mediterranean sea water along the Turkish coastline at its deepest and most richly colored. The 'turquoise' color of the Turkish coast: the specific blue-green color of the shallow-to-medium-depth Aegean sea (the 'Turquoise Coast' name specifically refers to this color — the deep, vivid, blue-green of the near-shore water, which appears significantly more teal than the deep-sea blue of open ocean, because: (1) the relatively shallow depth of much of the Turkish Aegean (the Aegean Sea averages approximately 570 meters depth, much shallower than the Mediterranean's approximately 1,500 meters average — allowing bottom reflectance to contribute to the water's perceived color in areas up to approximately 20-30 meters depth); (2) the high clarity of the Aegean water (low particulate and phytoplankton content — the Aegean is one of the clearest seas in the Mediterranean, with Secchi disk depths up to 30-50 meters in the most undisturbed bays); (3) the interaction of the specific Aegean rock types (primarily limestone — Calcareous rocks — which contributes calcium carbonate to the water, contributing to the specific clarity and slight teal color shift). The gulet sailing tradition: the gulet (from French: goélette — schooner) is the characteristic traditional wooden sailing boat of the Turkish Aegean and Mediterranean coast — a broad-beamed, two- or three-masted motor-sailer of 20-40 meters length, traditionally built from Turkish red pine (çam — Pinus brutia — Turkish red pine, also called Calabrian pine — native to the eastern Mediterranean) and operated for traditional coastal voyages. The gulet charter (mavi yolculuk — Turkish: 'blue voyage') was established as a cultural tradition by the Turkish poet and novelist Cevat Şakir Kabaağaçlı (pen name: Halikarnas Balıkçısı — 'The Fisherman of Halicarnassus,' 1890-1973), who first described the 'blue voyage' concept in his 1956 memoir. Sky Blue is the summer sky — the pale airy sky blue of the characteristic Turkish Aegean summer sky — reliably cloudless from approximately June through September, with a specific pale-to-mid blue quality produced by the very dry, clear air of the eastern Mediterranean summer (the Etesian winds — meltemi — blowing consistently from the north across the Aegean in summer — clear the air of moisture and particulates, producing exceptionally high atmospheric clarity and a specific pale, brilliant sky blue).