As one of the most beloved souvenirs in the world, few people know about the entirely accidental birth of the snow globe over 120 years ago in Vienna, Austria.
In the early 1900s, surgical instrument manufacturer Erwin Perzy (Vienna, Austria) received a request to create a bright surgical lamp, but instead, he invented the snow globe.
A Joyful Incident
Mr. Erwin Perzy I and Erwin Perzy III. (Photo: Mein-leben).
Erwin Perzy III, CEO of Original Viennese Snowglobe, shares the fascinating story of how his grandfather accidentally created the snow globe.
“The snow globe is my grandfather’s invention. He accidentally invented the snow globe in 1900. My grandfather was a surgical instrument maker, and he wanted to improve the Edison lamp for better lighting in the operating room. While experimenting, one of his tests resulted in the snow globe,” said Perzy III.
Back in 1900, Erwin Perzy I, a medical instrument manufacturer, wanted to enhance the performance of the lamps used in the operating room. He filled a glass globe with water to concentrate the light at a more precise point.
While engrossed in his research, he accidentally dropped a few grains of semolina inside the glass globe. Watching it, the floating grains reminded him of falling snow.
Sketch of the first snow globe in 1900, inspired by the Basilica of Mariazell. (Photo: Facebook).
And thus, the snow globe that we often buy each Christmas was born by chance.
Inspired by this accidental discovery, he crafted the first snow globe as a miniature model of the Basilica of Mariazell.
Due to the overwhelming demand for these snow globes, Perzy and his brother Ludwig established a snow globe shop based in Vienna.
Continuing the Family Legacy
Workshop of the Erwin Perzy III family. (Photo: Vaillancourt Folk Art).
The small workshop of Mr. Perzy III, the grandson of the inventor of the snow globe over 100 years ago, remains operational to this day.
Many of the family’s glass globes are sold at Christmas markets in Vienna, featuring designs of landmarks such as St. Stephen’s Cathedral and the Riesenrad Ferris Wheel.
This year, every employee in the workshop had to double their efforts after a fire in the paint shop disrupted production.
Mr. Perzy III stated: “Back in February this year, our company experienced a fire, and the area where we gold-plate products was also burned, so from February until August, we couldn’t do the gold-plating work. Thus, now we need to work very hard to meet customer orders.”
The workshop, consisting of 50 employees, is busy fulfilling year-end orders. Mr. Erwin shared that the workshop supplies about 200,000 to 300,000 snow globes each year, 80% of which are exported to the USA and Japan. In addition to bulk orders, individual customers include former U.S. presidents such as Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama.
Festive snow globes. (Photo: Austria).
Mr. Perzy III remarked: “Besides the three snow globes we made for the three former U.S. presidents, we also create snow globes for Hollywood movies and sometimes for very special guests. One of my special guests is the character Snow White.”
