These days, globes are relics of the past. With Google Maps, Apple Maps, and every other tech-savvy map, who needs a toddler-sized replica of the world? We tend to associate globes with musty wooden bookshelves or that one geography teacher in high school. They're unassuming little objects — or, at least, that's what we thought. We found a video on Instagram recently detailing a globe in the making, though, and it'll make you rethink the schoolhouse prop. Check it out, below.
The video is actually a clip from a larger documentary by British Pathé, a newsreel production company from the first half of the 20th century. In 1955, the company produced a short film about how globes are made (a concept not all that different from Refinery29's own video on how dildos are made). This particular clip features the actual forming of the sphere. The worker (globe-maker?) spins the globe against a concave semi-circle, all the while coating it with plaster. The result? A pearly smooth sphere, ready to take on the world.
Why is the video in question so relaxing? Maybe it's because it's a wondrous feat to create the world in full. Or maybe because it really reminds us of that iconic pottery-making scene in Ghost. (Probably the former.)
Watch the full video here.