Though Perzy—who patented his globe in 1900—didn’t invent the snow globe, he and his brother are responsible for catapulting the souvenir into the position of tchotchke primacy it holds today. Seizing on the invention, the pair opened a shop, Original Wiener Schneekugel Manufaktur, in Vienna. Today, that shop is still run by an Erwin Perzy—his grandson, Erwin Perzy III—and they still make snow globes, containing Austrian tourist attractions, animals, and Christmas themes, in the same Vienna workshop where the original Perzy practiced his craft. But it’s easy to forget that Perzy was also an artisan. His items were painstakingly hand-crafted. So while his snow globes (also called “snow domes” or “snow weights”) were exquisite and popular, they were neither cheap nor widespread. For the snow globe to go global, it needed to be mass-produced—and that’s how America got into the business.
If you just can’t get enough zombie snow globes, be sure to head over to Etsy shop goodsbygoose and grab this decidedly more morbid take on the concept featuring a survivor in a life or death battle with an undead creature. Did I mention this one glows in the dark? As if you needed more of a reason to snag this great gift. This mad scientist snow globe is the perfect gift for anyone you know who spends his or her life down in the basement tinkering on something and laughing maniacally—or someone who happens to be a regular scientist with aspirations for more. Admit it, this is definitely the most “precious” snow globe you’ve seen in a while. (Sorry, I just couldn’t help myself.) Extra info at personalized snow globe.
Snowdomes, snowglobes, paperweights, snow machine, snow shakers, snow scene, water domes, water balls, dream globes, blizzard weights or dream balls were likely derived from heavy glass paper weights which were popular in the latter part of the 1800’s. The glass paperweights were made from costly materials which made the popular item inaccessible to the general public. Not only were snowglobes less expensive, they engaged the viewer. Snow globes are dynamic — creating a miniature snow storm descending on the encased diorama.
The origins of Christmas wreaths remain mostly a mystery. According to CBS, there are two theories about the origins of Christmas wreaths. One is that they are an “adaptation of the ceremonial wreaths of ancient Greece and Rome.” Another is that they developed from the “advent wreaths of mediaeval German Christians” who would adorn the wreaths with four candles to indicate the four weeks before Christmas. Even earlier, ancient Egyptians, the early Romans and the Vikings would display plants like green palm rushes, fir, spruce and evergreen branches that remained green all through wintertime as a way to ward off evil spirits and illness. Source: https://www.qstomize.com/collections/custom-snow-globe.