BBC Sherlock Fan Forum - Serving Sherlockians since February 2012 / (more than one eye colour) central heterochromia???

**Posted by zeratul** May 13, 2014 1:51 pm

Hi,

I read that Ben has central heterochromia. Meaning the different colour in his eyes.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heterochromia_iridum#Central_heterochromia

http://img1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130203231436/bakerstreet/images/b/b0/Benedict-Cumberbatch.jpg

I know a girl who has two different eye colours, but I didn't know before that there is a partial version of it...

Well I wonder, if two colours in the eye mean central heterochromia, does it mean that it is always central heterochromia when there are two colours? Or what's the different to "normal" coloured eyes???

Because I also cannot really tell what colour my eyes are...

What do you think? Which colour is it? I am confused...

Last edited by zeratul (May 13, 2014 5:37 pm)

**Posted by zeratul** May 14, 2014 10:20 pm

hmm no opinions?

**Posted by Punch me in the face** May 15, 2014 5:49 pm

Wow! You've got a really beautiful and unique eye colour!

But it's indeed hard to tell which colour they are! I'd say mostly greenish, but you've got bits of blue, green, brown and "yellow".

To be honest, I was wondering exactly the same thing as you lately. I've already met people who have one eye blue the other brown we call that "yeux vairons" in french), but I hadn't heard of the term "(central) heterochromia" until I read about it concerning Benedict.

I have the same problem as yours: I can't tell which colour my eyes are, and people never agree on that so it doesn't help. I have bits of brown in the middle, and greenish on the "outside", so, depending on the light, the colour of my eyes changes. It can look green, some sort of dark khaki or simply brown. I haven't got a picture on my pc which shows how brown they can also look, but here you are:

**Posted by Harriet** May 15, 2014 5:52 pm

http://lex09.altervista.org/

**Posted by Punch me in the face** May 15, 2014 6:10 pm

Thanks for the link, harriet

**Posted by zeratul** May 15, 2014 6:12 pm

Punch me in the face wrote:
Wow! You've got a really beautiful and unique eye colour!

But it's indeed hard to tell which colour they are! I'd say mostly greenish, but you've got bits of blue, green, brown and "yellow".

To be honest, I was wondering exactly the same thing as you lately. I've already met people who have one eye blue the other brown we call that "yeux vairons" in french), but I hadn't heard of the term "(central) heterochromia" until I read about it concerning Benedict.

I have the same problem as yours: I can't tell which colour my eyes are, and people never agree on that so it doesn't help. I have bits of brown in the middle, and greenish on the "outside", so, depending on the light, the colour of my eyes changes. It can look green, some sort of dark khaki or simply brown. I haven't got a picture on my pc which shows how brown they can also look, but here you are:

Yeah I would say that you got (central) heterochromia because the middle is clearly in a different colour and you got dark brown spots.

btw my passport says "green-grey"

Last edited by zeratul (May 15, 2014 6:13 pm)

**Posted by ComeAtOnceIfConvenient** August 9, 2014 9:41 pm

My eyes are the same, they're between blue and green with brown flecks around the pupil...I'll post a picture for you sometime. When I haven't just done a ten hour shift

**Posted by maryagrawatson** August 10, 2014 2:18 am

I think it has to do with the difference in the colours more so than the shades. If you look at Ben's eye's, he has very light greeny-blue irises ringed in hazel. I have the same thing; but mine are more blue-grey than blue-green (actually very similar to the picture show on the Wikipedia page OP linked to), but folks seem to really notice them. It wasn't until I got into Ben that I understood the compliments I've gotten all my life about my eyes!

OP, whether or not you have central heterochormia, your eyes are gorgeous! In French, we call eyes like that "pers." I don't think there's an equivalent term in English. It's used for greeny-blue eyes whose colour changes, looking more blue or green, depending on the lighting, the environment, what the person is wearing, etc. Very coveted!

Mary

**Posted by Lis** January 24, 2017 10:38 pm

Coming over from the discussion about eyes and central heterochromia in the TFP thread, these are my eyes. Sometimes they look more green and sometimes more blue depending on the light. Both my brother and sister (they're twins) have central heterochromia too.

Last edited by Lis (January 25, 2017 7:55 pm)

**Posted by Yitzock** January 25, 2017 1:32 am

Interesting revival of an old topic that I'm not sure I even knew was here. It looks like your eyes do have two colours in them, but I'm not an expert on these things.
My eyes look bluer depending on the light and what I'm wearing and greener at other times, but I believe they are all one colour.

I feel both fascinated and slightly uncomfortable looking at all the eye photos in here. I feel like lots of people are looking at me very intensely.

Last edited by Yitzock (January 25, 2017 1:36 am)

**Posted by This Is The Phantom Lady** January 25, 2017 1:54 pm

I find it fascinating! (and Lis, you have pretty eyes!)

I don't think I have it (it's hard to tell since they are pretty dark brown) but I know my eye colour changes with my mood... if I'm sad they are almost black.

My mum has that too, Her eyes are much lighter than mine... and I remember you could tell when she was really angry by looking in her eyes, they turned orange like a fire.

But yeah, that's probably off topic.

**Posted by Lis** January 25, 2017 6:48 pm

Thanks Phantom!

Eyes and the fact that they seem to change colour is definitely fascinating!

Like you say though Yitzock, eyes, especially just staring eyes, can be a little unnerving too haha.

Last edited by Lis (January 25, 2017 6:49 pm)

**Posted by Vhanja** January 25, 2017 7:20 pm

Ben's eyes are fascinating that way.

Green:

Golden:

Blue:

Silver:

**Posted by This Is The Phantom Lady** January 25, 2017 7:23 pm

They are and so beautiful!

When I saw him in Hamlet, the stage lights hit his eyes from the side in a way that they looked like dark blue sapphire. I was quite fascinating!

**Posted by Vhanja** January 25, 2017 7:25 pm

Sounds lovely!

And dark blue sapphire is more or less the colour of Martin's eyes, isn't it?

**Posted by This Is The Phantom Lady** January 25, 2017 7:30 pm

It is!

I was so mesmerized by his eyes in that moment I admit... I forgot for a moment where I was... his eyes truly are magic!

**Posted by Lis** January 25, 2017 7:53 pm

Ben's eyes are amazing!

**Posted by Naavy** January 27, 2017 3:49 pm

I found once (and now again) this photo:
Gold and purple!

BTW do two almost-black (but different) shades + wide really black border count as heterochromia too?

**Posted by Lis** January 27, 2017 7:19 pm

The man really does have gorgeous eyes, and his eyelashes are super pretty too!

I don't really know the ins and outs of central heterochromia other than it's the presence of more than one colour in the same iris with the second colour forming a ring around the pupil.

**Posted by Yitzock** January 27, 2017 10:18 pm

I think his two colours are the blue and then the greenish bits inside them, which in each eye is a bit different.