This is a large clear plastic ball, with a grid pattern printed on its surface. The ball consists of two hemispheres fixed together at the equator, with lines that converge at the ‘poles’ of the ball, and that run parallel to the ‘equator’, like lines of latitude and longitude. At the poles there are circles, where the lines stop.
The ball is supported by a plastic stand with three raised sections that support the base of the ball. These are cushioned with circular patches of grey felt. The ball can be rotated at will to sit in any orientation in the support.
Accession Number: 2019.ast.223
Alternative Name:
Primary Materials: Plastic, Textile: Felt.
On a paper sticker stuck to the base: “ARBOR SCIENTIFIC LTD.
BOX 113 PORT CREDIT, ONTARIO”
Dimensions (cm): Diameter = 50, Height = 53.
This globe was used for teaching, likely in an astronomical calculation or illustrative context.
Excellent: The globe is in excellent condition. The plastic is clear with only very small marks on the surface. The tape connecting the hemispheres is clear and intact. The felt supports are very slightly worn. The paper label on the base is slightly yellowed and peeling on the top right corner.
Associated Instruments:
Arbor Scientific Ltd, Port Credit, Ontario
Date of Manufacture: c. 1970s
This artifact may have been used for teaching at the Department for the Astronomy & Astrophysics or at the David Dunlap Observatory. If the former, it was probably moved at some point to the Observatory for storage. The sphere was kept at the David Dunlap Observatory until 2009. Upon the sale of the Observatory, it was moved to the University of Toronto’s Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics at the St George Campus. In 2017 it was moved to a new storage location in McLennan Physical Laboratories.
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