Editing Color wheel (section)

{{short description|Illustrative organization of color hues}}
{{other uses}}
{{Use American English|date=August 2016}}
[[File:Linear RGB color wheel.png|thumb|alt=Gradient linear RGB/CMY(K) colorsec|Gradient [[RGB]]/[[CMY color model|CMY]] color wheel]]
[[File:Boutet 1708 color circles.jpg|thumb|Seven-color and twelve-color color circles from 1708 (attributed to [[Claude Boutet]])]]
[[File:Bezold Farbentafel 1874.jpg|thumb|[[Wilhelm von Bezold]]'s 1874 ''Farbentafel'']]

A '''color wheel''' or '''color circle'''<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.colormatters.com/color-and-design/basic-color-theory|title=Basic Color Theory|website=Color Matters|last=Morton|first=J.L.}}</ref> is an abstract illustrative organization of [[color]]  [[hue]]s around a circle, which shows the relationships between [[primary color]]s, [[secondary color]]s, [[tertiary color]]s etc.

Some sources use the terms ''color wheel'' and ''color circle'' interchangeably;<ref>{{cite book|title=Artist's Color Manual: The Complete Guide to Working With Color|author=Simon Jennings|publisher=Chronicle Books|year=2003|isbn=0-8118-4143-X|url=https://archive.org/details/artistscolormanu00simo|url-access=registration|page=[https://archive.org/details/artistscolormanu00simo/page/26 26]|quote=color-wheel color-circle.}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Birren |first=Faber |title=Color dimensions; creating new principles of color harmony and a practical equation in color definition |publisher=Crimson Press |location=Chicago |publication-date=1934 |language=en}}</ref> however, one term or the other may be more prevalent in certain fields or certain versions as mentioned above. For instance, some reserve the term ''color wheel'' for mechanical rotating devices, such as [[color triangle|color tops]], filter wheels or the [[Newton disc]]. Others classify various color wheels as ''color disc'', ''color chart'', and ''color scale'' varieties.<ref>{{cite book|title=Elements of Natural Philosophy: For the Use of Schools and Academies|author=Joseph Anthony Gillet and William James Rolfe|year=1881|publisher=New York: Potter, Ainsworth|url=https://archive.org/details/elementsnatural00rolfgoog|page=[https://archive.org/details/elementsnatural00rolfgoog/page/n208 186]|quote=color-disc.}}</ref>