Globes
The sphericity of the Earth was established by Greek astronomy in the 3rd century BC , and the earliest terrestrial globe appeared from that period . The earliest known example is the one constructed by Crates of Mallus in Cilicia ( now Çukurova in modern-day Turkey ), in the mid-2nd century BC .
No terrestrial globes from Antiquity or the Middle Ages have survived . An example of a surviving celestial globe is part of a Hellenistic sculpture , called the Farnese Atlas , surviving in a 2nd-century AD Roman copy in the Naples Archaeological Museum , Italy .
Early terrestrial globes depicting the entirety of the Old World were constructed in the Islamic world . According to David Woodward , one such example was the terrestrial globe introduced to Beijing by the Persian astronomer , Jamal ad-Din , in 1267 .
The earliest extant terrestrial globe was made in 1492 by Martin Behaim ( 1459 – 1537 ) with help from the painter Georg Glockendon . Behaim was a German mapmaker , navigator , and merchant . Working in Nuremberg , Germany , he called his globe the " Nürnberg Terrestrial Globe ." It is now known as the Erdapfel . Before constructing the globe , Behaim had travelled extensively . He sojourned in Lisbon from 1480 , developing commercial interests and mingling with explorers and scientists . In 1485 – 1486 , he sailed with Portuguese explorer Diogo Cão to the coast of West Africa . He began to construct his globe after his return to Nürnberg in 1490 .
We hope you enjoy browsing our new AM Globes Range 2017 catalogue … simply click on any piece for more information .
The Authentic Models Team
at The King ’ s Jack Design Company