also: たんぜい
red and blue
Only with reading たんせい
Literal reference to the colors red and blue, often in classical or poetic contexts.
paints; colors
Only with reading たんせい
Extended from the literal colors to refer to paints or coloring materials in general, used in classical or artistic contexts.
Metonymic use for a painting or picture itself; a literary term. The reading たんぜい is a rare alternative.
Old documents record '丹青' as red and blue pigments.
The painter used paints skillfully to depict a landscape on the folding screen.
This painting is said to be a work from the Kamakura period.
Literary kanji compound; the reading たんせい is standard for senses 1–2, while たんぜい is a rare alternative reading for sense 3.
Rare alternative reading for the painting/picture sense; たんせい is more common.
From Chinese 丹青 (dānqīng), literally 'cinnabar red and indigo blue', used in classical Chinese to refer to painting and colors. The Japanese reading たんせい is the standard Sino-Japanese reading; たんぜい is a rare alternative.