W. & A.K. Johnston
18-Inch Empire-Style Floor Globe
London: c. 1900
46 x 23.5 inches
Sold, please inquire as to the availability of similar items.
W. & A.K. Johnston Floor Globe
19th Century
19th Century
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The 18-inch globe with brass hour circles at north and south poles, in calibrated brass meridian with gold wash, turning on ball-bearing mechanism, the horizon with engraved paper calendar and zodiac and decorated at the edge with repeating rectangular (modified Greek Key) design, raised on four quadrant supports turning on a pinion in a mahogany rectangular tapering central pillar with horizontal molding, supported by an incurved quadripartite plinth, above four scrolled feet, ending in casters.
The globe made up of two sets of twelve gores, the equatorial graduated in degrees in both directions, hours and minutes, the ecliptic graduated in days and showing symbols for the houses of the Zodiac, the Greenwich meridian and equinoctial colure graduated in degrees, showing Mean Isothermal Lines for January and July (with blue and red lines), the oceans with an analemma, submarine telegraph cables, ocean currents shown with white wavy lines but not indicated in key, the continents finely detailed, with nation states colored in shades of yellow, cream, green, orange, the Antarctic with projected coastline but little detail. Oklahoma, shown in west as Oklahoma and in east as Indian Territory. North and South Dakota divided. Oceans colored blue, now faded with varnish layer to green. International Date Line shown by thick red line.
The distinctive Empire style stand on which the globe is mounted also relates to those with W. & A.K. Johnston gores produced for export to the United States. Rand McNally and A.J. Nystrom also sold 18 inch floor globes on this type of stand.
W. & A.K. Johnston was among the most important figures in the production of globes in the late 19th Century and early 20th Century. For more about Johnston globes see our Guide to Globe Makers reference section.
Key Below Cartouche:
Submarine Telegraph Cables thus . . . Black Mean Isothermal lines for January . . . Blue Mean Isothermal lines for July . . . Red International Date Line [thick red line]
Circular Cartouche With Royal Crest Above Visible: 18 INCH/ TERRESTRIAL GLOBE/ by/ W. & A.K. JOHNSTON,/ LIMITED/ Geographers, Engravers & Printers,/ EDINBURGH/ and/ LONDON