The design of Blaeu’s globe references Johannes Bayer’s star atlas ‘Uranometria’ of 1603, rather than following 

’s tradition as previously thought. A total of eighty-three stars and up to eight star groups are named, including the forty-eight Ptolemaic constellations, four of non-Ptolemaic constellations, and twelve southern constellations observed by 

 (1552–1622). The nomenclature for some of the Ptolemaic constellations is extensively detailed and some of them are given in Greek, followed by the name in Arabic script. 

Close to the North Pole are two tables in a cartouche: one explaining the astrological symbols marked on the sphere and the other explaining precession (a change in the Earth’s axis of rotation) with a table based on a constant precession rate. New stars (novae) are indicated with explanations of Cassiopeia, Cygnus, and Ophiuchus, including notes indicating their first and last observed positions. 

The Sunderland Collection

Willem Janszoon Blaeu’s twenty-six-inch globes are the pinnacle of seventeenth-century Dutch cartography. Their size and grandeur stand testimony to the confidence and wealth of the maritime mercantile nation at the height of its powers. Blaeu intended the globe to be a luxury item aimed at wealthy merchants and noblemen. However, it was also one of the most detailed cosmological tools of its age, to be used as much as admired.

Astronomical details on the sphere include a magnitude table close to the North Pole. The Milky Way and Magellanic Clouds are labelled. There are two tables in a cartouche close to the North Pole: one explaining the astrological symbols marked on the sphere and the other explaining precession (a change in the Earth’s axis of rotation) with a table based on a constant precession rate. The constellations are said to be in the tradition of Gerard Mercator, but this is not the case. For this globe, Blaeu relied on the style used by Johannes Bayer in his star atlas ‘Uranometria’ of 1603. After Willem Blaeu's death in 1638, his son, Joan Blaeu (1596–1673) undertook a major update of the globe to incorporate new 'discoveries'. These were carried out with a combination of re-engraving the copperplates and printed overlays pasted on to the relevant portions of the globe.

The Blaeu family is synonymous with the finest mapmaking of the seventeenth century. Following Willem Blaeu’s death in 1638, his son Joan Blaeu expanded on his father’s works, such as the 'Atlas Maior', the largest and grandest atlas of its time. In 1599, Willem Blaeu had designed a completely original globe and by 1616, his greatest globes measured an impressive twenty-six inches in diameter - the largest ever produced and remained unsurpassed in scale until the end of the seventeenth century.

Willem Janszoon Blaeu’s twenty-six inch globes are the apotheosis of seventeenth-century Dutch cartography. Their size and grandeur stand testimony to the confidence and wealth of a great maritime and trading nation at the height of its powers.

Blaeu's Celestial Floor Globe