Terrestrial Globe Illuminated, Germany by Columbus Werkstudio

South America faces front, a dial sits on the base, and a black cord coils on the table like a sleeping cat.

This illuminated terrestrial globe comes from Berlin, Germany, made by Columbus Werkstudio and dated 1938. It is blown glass on a mahogany stand. Columbus globes of Berlin were widely sold in the decades before the war, and illuminated versions were popular desk pieces. The sphere is printed in muted greens and ochres, crossed by fine red shipping lines. A graduated metal meridian holds it at a tilt. The round base is glossy red, with a small dial and a ribbed black cord. It is 13 inches high and 13 in diameter.

The world, lit from within, in a calmer moment.