Globe mounting styles explained

     I've had a couple questions lately that got me thinking about the terms used to describe globes and one area I think could use some clarity is that of globe mounting styles.
     A globe mount is simply how a globe is attached to a base so that it can spin.  If you boil it down there are really 3 types of globe mounts.   1. Offset, or simple mount  2. Meridian mount,  3. Full mount.  I want to explain in words and pictures examples of each, so let's get started.

Offset, or simple mount

1.  Offset or simple mounted globe:   This is a globe that is affixed to a base either upright or canted at 23.5 degrees with no metal ring surrounding it( meridian ring) and no horizon band .  It is a stand and a globe.  It was popular for inexpensive school globes because they were the least costly to produce as well as the least expensive to purchase.  After WW2 they started a steady decline in popularity.  Here are a few examples.

 

1/2 meridian

full meridian

  2.  Meridian mounted globe:   This style globe is very popular today,  but it's been manufactured for a couple hundred years in the US .   This is a globe mounted on a base with either a full meridian or 1/2 meridian usually made of metal and usually with graduations in degrees marked out.    Most new globes sold today have at least a 1/2 meridian .   Many full meridian globes, also rest in a metal cradle or fork that holds the globe and allows it to be adjusted to any position and then secured via a "set" screw, here are some examples of this style

Full mount globe

3. Full mount : A full mount globe has a full meridian, as well as a horizon band ( commonly made of wood) that encircles the globe at a 90 degree angle to the meridian.   It is considered the most complete mount, it is the most traditional mounting style, and historically was by far the most common way globes were produced up until the mid point of the 19th century,  they are still made and sold today.  They are because of the materials involved the most expensive globes to produce.

     Just as then, today collectors can find all styles, and plenty of variations of these 3 main styles for sale, and just as then sometimes the price of a vintage globe is influenced by it's mounting style.  All other things being equal I would expect to pay about 20% more for a globe in full meridian and an additional 20% premium for a fully mounted globe.
     For example if you were to find a nice 8 inch Weber Costello globe with claw foot base in the simple mount I'd expect the price to be $250-$400 based on condition( at auction).  If this same globe, same condition were in a full meridian, I would expect $300- $500.  And If this globe came up at auction in it's full mount variant ( the most rare) I would expect to pay somewhere in the $400- $650 price range.  Again this is a very rough guide but I want to illustrate how the globe mount will affect value.

Happy Hunting......