THE EARTH IN MINIATURE
Terrestrial globes captured epic feats of exploration on the tiniest of scales
The Tudor era was one in which the world grew smaller – in more ways than one. As travellers embarked on voyages to distant destinations, they stoked a burgeoning obsession with global commodities. And that turned the world itself into an object that could be held or possessed.
Pictured here is a terrestrial globe made by Emery Molyneux in 1592. Molyneux’s spheres are the first of their kind known to have been produced in England, and were made from flour paste to protect them from humidity at sea.
Molyneux’s work reflects England’s evolution into a major player in the field of exploration: his globe features the circumnavigations of English adventurers
