What colors are the girl's turban in the painting?

The girl’s turban is blue and gold, more precisely described by some art historians as blue and yellow.

Vermeer painted the head covering from contrasting pieces of fabric: a blue band or wrap around the head and a yellow-gold cloth that falls behind the girl’s shoulder. The striking combination gives the small painting much of its visual identity, especially against the nearly black background.

The color is often simplified in reproductions and quiz descriptions. “Blue and gold” is a fair modern description of the visible palette, while museum and conservation accounts may use “blue and yellow” because the material was painted with yellow pigment rather than metallic gold. Neither wording means the turban is a single flat color; Vermeer used layered paint and light to suggest folds, texture, and reflective fabric.

The blue was associated with ultramarine, a valuable pigment traditionally made from lapis lazuli. Scientific examination has also revealed dark underpainting beneath areas of the turban, showing that the apparent simplicity of the garment rests on careful construction.