This morning at 2:50 Eastern Daylight Time, the Earth will undergo the Autumnal Equinox.
The Earth spins on an axis which runs through the center of the Earth, from the North Pole to the South Pole. This imaginary "stick," on which the Earth spins, tilts toward and then away from the Sun over the course of its annual cycle. When the Northern Hemisphere of the Earth is tilting toward the Sun (as it does during the Spring and Summer), the days in the North are longer and warmer. When the Northern Hemisphere of the Earth leans away from the Sun (as it does during the Autumn and Winter), the days in the North are shorter and colder. This cycle of tilting back-and-forth happens every year, creating the seasons on the Earth. But—twice a year—the "axis stick" is perfectly vertical—straight up-and-down. This is the Autumnal Equinox in the Autumn and the Vernal Equinox in the Spring.
On those two moments (the two equinoxes), while the Earth is standing perfectly upright before the Sun, the day and the night are the same length of time. This is how "Equinox" got its name: "Equal" and "Night."
The Autumnal Equinox also marks the first day of Autumn. Starting tomorrow, each day will be increasingly shorter than the night (until the Winter Solstice, 21 December, the Northern Hemisphere's shortest day, after which the days begin to lengthen again).
The English Art Deco ceramic vase, shown above, boasts a vertically-ribbed, gourd-shaped form. Its glaze is an intriguing, mottled blending of deep orange over a yellow underglaze—non unlike the dappled, molten surface of the Sun. Click on the photo above to learn more about it.
Though our Greenwich Village store is now permanently closed, LEO Design is still alive and well! Please visit our on-line store where we continue to sell Handsome Gifts (www.LEOdesignNYC.com).
We also can be found in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania at The Antique Center of Strabane (www.antiquecenterofstrabane.com).
Or call to arrange to visit our Pittsburgh showroom (by private appointment only). 917-446-4248