What if you could make it snow anytime you wanted? On those hot, sweltering summer days, you might change the weather in New York city or on a small tropical island surrounded by palm trees. Would you like it to snow on Santa, or an Alpine village snuggled up against the side of a mountain? Do you believe you can do it? Well, that is just what you can do with one of the most classic Christmas decorations to span the ages, a Snow Globe.
Whether it’s small or large, new or old, passed down through each generation or fresh out of the factory, they all have a unique magic of their own.
There’s something so special about holding the orb in your hand, tipping it upside down and watching the soft flakes flutter, swirl, spin and finally come to rest creating a flawless blanket of white. You find yourself being whisked away to this imaginary land and for a few precious moments the magic is real.
Click on picture above for more information from Amazon
It’s said that the Snow Globe was invented by accident in 1900 by Erwin Perzy, a shoemaker, who in an effort to assist a surgeon that asked for help with a lighting problem during surgery, inadvertently invented the Snow Globe.
Click on picture above for more information from Amazon
You see Perzy found that a container with water that had particles mixed in would bounce incoming light to reflect and amplify it allowing for greater illumination. You have to remember, that even though the electric light bulb existed at that time, the illumination that came from it was very weak in comparison to today’s light bulbs.
Well, his discovery didn’t help the surgeon too much as the reflected light wasn’t powerful enough to sufficiently illuminate the surgical hall to the degree needed, but something totally unexpected did come from it. The first Snow Globe! Now, I must say, there has been debate on who was actually the first person to create the Snow Globe. But, whether Perzy really did create the very first one or not, it’s still a cool story! And unlike the shoemaker and the elf, this story is true, at least I’ve come to think so. It seems like the shoemaker stories are some of the best!
Although the early globes were beautiful and classic, made from hand with special care, they didn’t gain wide popularity until years later. Eventually though they caught on in a big way and over time came to be mass produced with modern technology and made their way into the main stream gift and novelty market. Each and every one of us has the ability to acquire a little winter wonderland of our own. And now that you can, where would you make it snow? The possibilities are endless just like the large variety of globes available around the world.
Click on picture above for more information from Amazon
Go on, why don’t you add another to your collection? What, you don’t have one yet? Well, this Christmas is a great time for you to start your collection. Which will be your first?