| “ | Hey you know, you should get out, enjoy the sun. Oh wait, you can't. | ” |
Morning Sun
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is the brightest regularly visible celestial body in Earth's sky, the second being the Moon.
Sunlight is one of the basic weaknesses of all vampires, including the Originals, having been a key ingredient in their creation. As there is no Sun and Moon Curse, vampires are naturally weak against the sun.
Effects[]
Stefan Salvatore suffering severe, rapid sunburn.
Under normal circumstances, daylight is harmful to vampires, and depending on factors, such as intensity and exposure length, the effects may range from merely causing the vampire to sizzle or steam, to incinerating them instantly on the spot. Vampires that are still in transition can resist the effects of direct exposure, albeit will be severely inconvenienced by it.
Elijah burns in the sun
Unlike normal vampires, Original vampires are resistent to the sun. Although the sun can severely weaken an Original, they are unable to be killed by it and they will still burn and catch fire while exposed to the sun without the protection of a daylight ring.
History[]
Intense sunlight
The reason why vampires are naturally weak against the sun started at the time of the Originals, when the witch Esther used the sun's life aspect and the White Oak tree's immortality to make her family live forever and be able to protect themselves. Sunlight is harmful but not fatal to Originals, however, Esther created the very first daylight rings.
Some vampires have spelled daylight jewelry with Lapis Lazuli; these rings must be forged by witches because the lapis itself is simply a stone. It protects them from the sunlight. So long as the vampire wears it in the sun, he or she can't die from exposure. Both Stefan and Damon Salvatore are in possession of rings containing lapis lazuli which protect them from the harmful effects of the sun. However, without such a ring sunlight will burn a vampire on contact.
Elena Gilbert set on fire by the sun.
In You're Undead to Me, during Damon's imprisonment, Stefan deprives him of his ring so when he later tries attacking Caroline and runs into a shaft of sunlight, he's left with nasty facial burns following exposure of approximately three seconds.
Slater's café and home contained double paned and tempered glass windows to block out UV rays, making them safe environments for vampires. While this demonstrates the harmful element of natural UV light, it is unclear if artificial UV light would have the same effect. Furthermore, it's unclear if the lapis lazuli rings protect against only natural sunlight or UV rays in general.
Trivia[]
- In the Tv series, Isobel Flemming is the first vampire who died from sun exposure.
- In the novels, Katherine von Swartzschild and Elena Gilbert are the first vampires to die of sun exposure.
- Known vampires that have been damaged by sunlight are: Alaric Saltzman, Damon Salvatore, Stefan Salvatore, Ben McKittrick, Caroline Forbes, Rose, Katherine Pierce, Isobel Flemming, Rebekah Mikaelson, Elena Gilbert, Slater, Lexi Branson, Gia, Elijah Mikaelson, Alexander's prey, Greta Sienna, and Hayley Marshall-Kenner.