Best Miniature Globes in the World
by Mark Jeffery, globemaker at goodwoodglobes
Just because the Earth is big, it doesn’t mean a globe can’t be small! 3-inch diameter pocket globes have been made since the 17th century, but since then, a whole new category of miniature globes has emerged, with 2-inch, 1-inch or even ½-inch diameters.
Here’s a curated collection of the best miniature globes you can buy from around the world.
Julia Forte
Julia Forte's mini globes are just 5 cm in diameter and depict historical maps of London or New York.
Her malachite cases add beautiful colour to these beautiful globes!
Price: £80 (around $100)
MC Planetariums
MC Planetariums handcraft exquisite orreries from brass and oak. These mechanical models depict the Earth and the Moon – as well as, in their prototype inner planets model, Mercury, Venus and Mars – in orbit around the sun. Turn the handle and a series of brass cogs cause the planets to rotate.
The miniature globes in these orreries are painstakingly handfinished in Cantabria, Spain.
Prices: each orrery individually priced
West End Collectables
UK-based West End Collectables make a variety of globe marbles, including these ½-inch diameter blue Earth marbles.
Made from recycled glass, you can even order an entire solar system, each planet represented as a marble!
Prices: £9 – £40 (around $12 – $55)
Murray Hudson
Murray Hudson, based in Tennessee, keep an impressive list of antique miniature globes, from hollow tin orbs designed for early 20th-century children to globes doubling as everything from inkwells to salt and pepper shakers.
Prices: $50 – $6,000
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