About Snow Globes

Snow globes are a much loved collectible and can be found in many homes across the world. No one can resist shaking a snow globe and then watching the snow slowly fall back to the bottom. The fake snow storm turns an ordinary globe with a figure or landscape into a magical winter wonderland.

History

Snow globes, which are sometimes called water globes, started showing up in France in the early 1800's. It was thought they may have been a branch off of the then popular glass paperweights. Within a few years, snow globes worked their way across the world. Joseph Garaja, who lived in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania was granted the first snow globe patent in America. To this day, snow globes are popular collectibles and souvenirs for families everywhere.

Features

Snow globes are glass or plastic domes filled with water or a water and antifreeze mix. They are capped with a base that is made of several different types of material, including but not limited to wood, plastic and ceramic. The figures or scenes can be made from different materials, like bisque, rubber or molded plastic. Flitter is what the snow is called and is made from tiny balls of white plastic. Some snow globes also play music or light up.

Types

There are a lot of different types of snow globes manufactured today. They can have holiday themes, such as Christmas, Easter or Halloween and there are those used for election campaigns. There are many snow globes of Disney characters and movies, and religious themes. There is even a snow globe from the movie Halloween with Micheal Myers and his sister who is played by Jamie Lee Curtis. Red flitter or snow falls when this globe is shaken.

Identification

Snow globes have changed over the years since they first started being produced. No longer are the domes made out of heavy lead glass, but instead of a much thinner glass or plastic. The base of the snow globes are now made with plastic, wood or metal. Where bone chips or sand used to be the snow, it went to gold foil particles and now white plastic is used.

Expert Insight

Snow globes are collected by all kinds of people. Corbin Bernsen, an L.A. Law star, has a snow ball collection in the range of 6,500. Just like with every collectible item, the odder the snow ball theme, the better. One example is the Pez bride and groom snow globe that is a part of the Mitchell Gordon collection.