John Jolliffe

Whole world in his hands: a fascinating story of globes and globemaking

How the search for a birthday present led to the founding of a unique business

17th-century handcoloured engraving of René Descartes with globes. [Bridgeman Images]
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  • The Globemakers: The Curious Story of an Ancient Craft

    Peter Bellerby

    Bloomsbury, pp. 240, £25

Despite the subtitle of this fascinating book, it soon turns into an account of how Peter Bellerby’s obsession eventually led to a considerable personal triumph. Unable to find a worthy 80th birthday present for his father, he set out to create a globe himself, which led him to found Bellerby & Co, ‘the only fully bespoke globemakers in the world’.

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