Water Globe

water Globe

water globe

The invention of the Water Globe  seems to be connected with the development of solid glass paperweights in France in the mid-1800s.

At the 1878 Paris universal exhibition, Charles Cole that the American deputy secretary of commissions of glass works, wrote the first documented report of snow domes.

However, he made no mention of the name of origin of the paperweights he described.

The first souvenir snow domes were made to, commemorate the construction of the Eiffel tower.

They proved extremely popular but unfortunately none survive today.

water globe

the 1940s saw a boom in snow dome production with mass production plastic examples taken over from handmade glass domes.

This was stated by Joseph Garajas patent of 1927, one of the first relating to snow domes, which enable them to be assembled under water and consequently helped mass production.

In the 1960s and 1970s  the far east began exporting large numbers of domes to the West, but they are often of lower quality and made without copyright.

water globe

With new collecting interest,  it now means that high quality glass snow domes are being made once more and are  available in a huge range of themes.

Look out for good quality glass domes, unusual shapes,

examples with see saws are similar internal moving  parts are also desirable.

The water level can effect value, with empty examples being less popular, however some are designed to be refilled., Original boxes are  desirable.

Snow domes that cross over to other collecting themes, such as McDonald’s, Disney, can be more expensive as they will appeal to a wide range of collectors.

I hope you have found this page on the water globe  to be both informative and helpful. Happy hunting

from the collectables coach.