Spring Equinox

春分 · ChūnfēnGregorian Mar 20–22Solar longitude 0°

Day and night stand equal, warmth and cold in balance. Swallows return, and crabapple, pear and magnolia bloom in succession.

Mid-spring, the fourth day of the month —

the colors of spring divide precisely in half.

— Xu Xuan (Song), “On the Spring Equinox”

仲春初四日
春色正中分
徐铉 · 春分日

Crabapple Red

Three Pentads

三候

The ancients divided each solar term into three pentads of five days, recording nature's subtle changes.

一候玄鸟至

First pentad — Swallows arrive

二候雷乃发声

Second pentad — Thunder finds its voice

III

三候始电

Third pentad — Lightning first flashes

节气色谱

One leading color with three companions, all drawn from the traditional Chinese color canon.

海棠红#C35C5D

hǎitánghóng · Crabapple Red

鹅黄#E8D283

éhuáng · Gosling Yellow

柳绿#8CA869

liǔlǜ · Willow Verdant

云水蓝#BACCD9

yúnshuǐlán · Cloud-Water Blue

风物

Standing eggs upright — a playful test of the day's perfect balance.

竖蛋——春分日竖鸡蛋,玩的是天地平衡的巧劲。

Flying kites in the mild equinox winds.

放风筝——草长莺飞,正是纸鸢上天的好时节。