Handcrafted Mars globe

Planetary globes are rare items. Amongst them, planet mars was always of utmost interest. It was the observation by Italian astronomer Giovanni Schiaparelli (1835-1910) that framed the idea of intelligent life on planet mars. Schiaparelli observed a complex network of fine dark lines on the surface of mars. These long straight lines appeared to have been drawn using a ruler or compass and Schiaparelli called them “canali”. Percival Lowell (1855-1916), an American businessman, author, mathematician, and astronomer, was fascinated by Schiaparelli’s observations and build his own observatory in Flagstaff Arizona solely for observation of planet mars. For over fifteen years Lowell observed Mars and named over 200 mars canals. Lowell was convinced that an advanced but desperate culture had built the canals to tap Mars’ polar ice caps, the last source of water on an inexorably drying planet. It was his idea that excited the public. H.G. Wells’ War of the worlds (1897) and Edgar Rice Burroughs’ A Princess of Mars (1912) are strongly influenced by Lowell’s view.
Historical Mars canal globes are extremely rare and there are no replicas available. Therefore, a newly founded globe manufactory, Planetenkugel-Manufaktur, located in Germany decided to fill this gap and released a handcrafted 12-inch globe showing the historical map by Percival Lowell.
This globe is created traditionally with 12 hand applied paper gores which are mounted on a plaster sphere and finished with a special varnish. The globe is then mounted onto a classical wooden base and it’s perfectly balanced so it spins smoothly.
Watch this Little film about the manufactory and the mars globe: https://vimeo.com/138799685