A History of Columbus World Globes

Columbus globes are featured throughout JustGlobes. They range from around £100 all the way up to over £25,000. They also produce some of the national geographic globes features on JustGlobes. This page is dedicated to the history of this illustrious globe manufacturer.

Columbus Globes was originally known as "the publishing house" and was based in Berlin in Germany. It opened in 1909. Its founder was called Paul Oestergaard, his vision was to bring high quality reference globes to the general public. This was ambitious as at the time high quality reference globes were largely too expensive to be supplied to the general public.

The globes the Mr Oestergaard produced had superior cartography and were sold at a more affordable price than competitors at the time. The globes became so successful that they were soon manufactured in 24 languages and sold across the world. Within a decade the factory in Berlin did not have the capacity to fulfil its orders.

During the second world war, the Columbus factory and administration buildings were severely damaged, as well as the Oestergaard household. This prompted the Oestergaard family along with Columbus Globes to move to Stuttgart. New manufacturing facilities lead to the creation of the DUO globe. This new globe was patented as the first "dual mapping" globe ever created, where the mapping changes from physical to political as the globe itself is illuminated.

In 1963, the third Oestergaard generation took over the company. Peter Oestergaard was a machine builder by trade, this helped the design and production of the globes. Peter Oestergaard was instrumental in producing the DUPLEX globe, which was a world first. It was the first globe to be made from plastic, its process was also mostly automated for maximum efficiency.

In 1972 a new type of globe was once again created at Columbus Globes. It was simply called the Planet Earth. This was arguably the most information-rich desktop globe ever produced up to this point. To this day the Planet Earth (see above picture) is available from JustGlobes with the same impressive features as approximately 40 years ago. The Planet Earth shows a display of day, night and twilight, as well as the cycle of seasons.

Following the re-unification of Germany and the steady collapse of the USSR from 1993 onwards, the Oestergaard family moved again to a much larger factory to enable a move to a digit cartography format. this allows for a more cost efficient and fast way to update cartography. This also enabled the whole company to operate under the same building where the family could have better control of the final product.

In 1999 Columbus Globes took over another speciality globe maker who was among the last still producing hand-laminated, mouth-blown crystal spheres for cartographic globes. The acquisition of this manufacturing process has essentially preserved this particular method of globe making from going extinct. The Black Forest and Bremen models available on JustGlobes are made from this method.

Defining Features, Functionality and Composition of World Globes

At JustGlobes we are always trying to help our customers decide which globe will suit them best. We are positive that there is a globe for everyone.

Below are a number of important features along with an example of the feature on a globe available from us either by special order or directly from our site.

Crystal/ Glass World Globes

There are two globe models on JustGlobes that fit into this category. The Black Forest (shown) and the Bremen floorstanding globe. These globes are hand-blown like traditional glass but are made using glass-polymer. This is much stronger and more durable than traditional glass yet has a very similar refractive index making it the idea ultra-premium material for the manufacture of world globes. Both models mentioned above are manufactured in Germany to the highest quality standards as one would expect from German manufacturing. World globes manufactured in this way are designed to appeal to the contemporary home or office. Due to the fact that they are hand blown they are only available in 16". This makes the Black Forest an impressive desktop model as the standard size for a desktop world globe 12".


Dry Erase World Globes

There are two models available that can be written on without damaging the cartography. These are Geographer (shown) which is available directly from the website and the Blank Globe which is available if requested. These world globes are defined by their unique design function. The surface on these world globes is similar to that of a white board that you might see in a school or university. White board pens (supplied) can be used to annotate the surface as required and can simply be wiped off when dry. Such globes are very popular among schools and other educational environments.





Gemstone Globes

Gemstone world globes are defined by the material that they are made out of. Because of their superior beauty gemstone world globes are largely used solely for decorative purposes. A gemstone globe makes a great gift for that special person who is oh so hard to buy for. Due to the wide variety of styles and colour schemes available gemstone globes are well suited to home and office decorating. Gemstone globes use many different types of materials, depending on the coloration that is desired for the finished globe. In addition to Abalone Shell and Mother of Pearl, the semi-precious stones include Amethyst, Aphrizite, Belioculas Onyx, Black Spotted Jade, Chrysolithos, Coral, Green Jade, Green Jasper, Lapis, Lapis Siphnos, Mongolian Jade, Mongolian Red Spotted Jade, Mongolian White Jade, Phoenix Jade, Picture Jasper, Purple Quartz, Red Jade, Red Spotted Jade, South African Jade, Spotted Jade, Tiger Eye, Turquoise, and White Jade.

Illuminated Globes

Illuminated globes are defined by their functionality. Thin acrylic or vinyl is normally used to make up the globe ball of an illuminated globe. This is because these materials are thinner, stronger and far less expensive than glass. Illuminated world globes make great night lights, and are great for mood lighting. Illuminated globes have a subtle, understated illumination that adds a warm, more person touch to a room that is difficult to achieve with standard lighting. Models such as the Dresden (shown) are extremely popular due to the incredibly vibrant cartography achievable on an illuminated globe.
All illuminated models available at JustGlobes require access to a power socket and connect via a cable. If an illuminated globe also has a gyroscopic feature the cable may slightly limit the mobility of the globe. All of which must be considered before purchase.

Physical Globe

A physical globe could perhaps be better describes as a globe with physical mapping. Physical world globes show a deliberate advantage to mountains, deserts, forests and the globes relative colours on its cartography and forgoes political boundaries which are more common. Physical globes are popular in schools for geography lessons and with customers who are more interested in physical geography. The Atlantis (shown) also features fully gyroscopic rotation and the most impressive raised relief available on any world globe on JustGlobes.co.uk.






Political Globe

Political world globes are easily the most common type of globes. Political cartography refers to mapping which highlights country boundaries by colouring countries in different colours. This is more popular as most globes are purchased as a reference. Political colouring as seen on the Pioneer globe (shown) can be bright and visually striking.

A Cartographic History of Globes

Globe History

The oldest known western terrestrial globe (a globe featuring the planets surface) was made in 1492 by a German from Nuremberg called Martin Behaim. 

The most interesting thing to note about the first ever world globe was that it features gaps, where we had not yet mapped. The most significant area that springs to mind is the area west of the UK across the Atlantic ocean. 

In the very same year, explorer Christopher Columbus set sail west from Spain sailing towards what he thought would be the east Indies but what turned out to be north America. This land corresponded remarkably to a large gap on Benhaim's world globe. Due to the monumental discovery of north America, the invention of a world globe seemed rather insignificant. This is completely understandable as the discovery of North America in 1492 can only be compare to the moon landings in 1969 for global impact.

Globes are among the most ancient scientific instruments known. Their history extends more than a thousand years, and today they are more popular than ever due to the communication age that we live in. One very significant contribution to the globe came from an Alexandrian astronomer and geographer called Claudius Ptolemaeus (or Ptolemy) in the second century AD. In his most noted works "the Almagest and the Geography", he recorded the earliest known description for calculating the fixed position of an object on a sphere using spherical coordinates. Such coordinate systems are the foundation on which all later globes have been designed.

The word "globe" is derived from the Latin "globus", which means sphere. Throughout the centuries globes have often been sold in pairs, one celestial or night sky and the other terrestrial or worlds surface. This became less popular toward the end of the 19th century. Celestial or night sky globes are still available today at www.JustGlobes.co.uk.

Terrestrial Globes

A terrestrial globe is easiest to conceive as a model of the Earth, it has been viewed for centuries as a symbol of open mindedness by the scientific community as only a world globe shows each and every country in their correct proportions and all the distances between countries to the same scale. This creates no political or relative power bias that some maps display.

Celestial Globes

A celestial or night sky globe is a little more difficult to explain. The ancient Greeks perceived the Earth, moon and solar system as if it was surrounded by a hollow shell or "outer sky" of stars and various constellations, they had of course not discovered any relevant distances of stars. A celestial globe is a model of this outer sky. however because this model is seen from the Earth and therefore an inside point, the representation on the globe reversed, because we view it from an outside point.

A symbol of knowledge but also of power , the celestial globe became an attribute of Roman Emperors, emblematic of their dominion over an empire that spanned a significant proportion of the globe.

After Ptolemy and the Roman empire celestial globes became lost to the world, only the techniques behind them were remembered and passed on by Byzantine scribes. This was also threatened by Christianity which likened astronomy and astrology to paganism. It was eventually Arab scholars who revived astronomy, passed on through Islamic conquests. 

The Printed Globe

Techniques like wood cutting to fashion objects and art out of wood and various metal engraving became increasing used toward the end of the 15th century in Europe. Thus early European globes were made from wood or metal.

Wooden world globes had linen or vellum laid over them on which the appropriate cartography was printed. When metal globes were used the cartography was engraved onto the surface. 

The above traditional methods of globe manufacture were soon replaced by the printed globe.

It was in 1527 that the first paper gores were printed. This relates to the technique that is used today to create the highest quality globes. The cartography for the globe is printed onto convex paper segment and then laid on to the sphere as if replacing the peel of orange. This is the only method that creates no spatial or directional distortion and it is why globes are a superior reference tool when looking at the world as a whole.

Reference texts:

Globi Neerlandici by P.v.d Krogt

Glboes from the Western World by E.Dekker and P.v.d Krogt.