Peter Bellerby
The beginning of a craft
Photo: Euan Myles / Bellerby & Co Globemakers
Birthday Occasion: You mentioned that the search for a gift for your father's 80th birthday started this journey. Looking back on those first "hundreds of globes that weren't good enough," what was the exact moment or turning point when you realized you had finally mastered traditional globe making?
Really, this was just supposed to be a hobby, maybe make one for myself along with one for my dad. If I had started with a business plan, I would never have started. So many aspects had to come together for me to master the process. Make the sphere molds correctly, get the right weight and finish for the sphere, design a map with precise measurements, learn how to cut segments with a scalpel, find the right paper, the right glue, learn how to wet and stretch the paper over the sphere. If any of these elements are moved even by a millimeter, there will be overlapping paper or large gaps between the segments when the last one is placed. When all those aspects came together and I placed the segments on the sphere for the first time in a way that I was happy with, that was a big moment. In particular, there is also the design of the map itself, the construction of the base, the metalwork for the meridians and much more that needs to be mastered to make everything fit. Traditional globes should also be works of art, so creating our signature style by working with extremely talented watercolor artists over the years has taken our designs to a new level.
Self-Taught Mastery: In an era where there are "how-to" videos for everything, you've been learning through trial and error for two years. What was the most frustrating physical obstacle you had to overcome glue chemistry, paper tension or sphere geometry?
Making the mold for the sphere was a big challenge, but placing the segments is a real art that takes time even with help.
Our student globe makers get everything ready and trained (so they don't have to deal with sizes, paper, glue, sphere issues), are shown the steps, but still need at least a year to master making the smallest globe. Some never succeed and at some point both parties have to realize that this is not a craft that everyone can master. It takes patience, stubbornness, persistence and daily practice. You have to train your hands and muscle memory.
Each new globe size requires additional training.
The art of goring
Fragility of the process: You describe working with wet, stretchy paper as extremely risky. Can you describe the sensory experience of that process? How does it feel in your hands when the segment is perfectly positioned, and how does it feel when you know it's off by a fraction of a millimeter?
Globusar sees and feels when something is wrong already at the beginning. He also feels when the paper is handled too much it can become like laminated paper, tear or bubble. During training, they go through a year or more of trial and error on test globes and when they start working on real globes, their hands feel everything and have confidence in how to place each segment and what to do when things don't go as planned. They have to know how long the paper should stay in the water, what the conditions are like in the room, and some even regulate breathing.
The human factor: Your globes pass through at least five pairs of hands. In a world of digital perfection, why does the "hand painted" look of watercolor resonate more with clients than a digitally perfected print?
Would you go to a museum to look at digital prints of Van Gogh, Monet and Picasso?
I doubt it. In the museum, you see the depth of the paint, the strokes of the brush, the layers, you feel something. Digital print appears flat and cold.Objects in the home can have meaning and a story. Each of our globes is unique and tells a story.
Real art has soul and warmth.Our globe makers are the best in the world, extremely skilled. Watercolor artists are top painters with experience. Carpenters make the bases by hand, the metal work is done by hand, the meridians are engraved using traditional techniques. Larger globes involve over 10 people in the making.
There is no comparison between handmade and mass produced. Digital products are rarely perfect and often not ethically produced.
Cartography in the modern age
Live Map: While Google Earth is for function, your globes are for inspiration. How do your cartographers balance between historical "romance" and contemporary precision?
Cartographers have the opportunity to do historical versions as well, we make globes from other eras and insert historical references. Globes can be functional people record family history, travel, business connections. At the same time, they are also aesthetic objects.
Personal story: You've done globes with over 300 illustrations or band tour routes. Does a map stop being a map and become a biography?
The map always remains the base, and the story fits into it. It is inspiring to work with clients and their stories. When viewed from a distance, you can see a classic globe, and up close, the personalized details come to the fore.
Luxury, privacy and heritage
Heirloom: With prices ranging from £1,000 to £89,000+, buyers are investing in heirlooms. Why do people want a physical globe in 2026?
People love art and beautiful objects in the home. Many buy luxury items that are mass-produced and short-lived. Our globes are unique, personalized and passed down through the generations. Clients participate in the design and can see the construction process.
Silent Stories: What is the most extreme personalization request?
We are working on a globe with a magnetic system that splits into two parts for transportation. We did carved lion claws for the legs of the base. One client requested an illustration of each year of his father's life on the rim of the base.
The future of studies
Retaining the skill: How do you recognize a student who has patience?
We do a trial day and watch him solve problems with his hands and mind.
Tangible reward: How do you stay connected to the craft?
I still work practically every day, solving problems and working on new designs. In my private life, I maintain an old house and a car, which also requires manual labor.
Globe or flat map?
Always a globe a flat map is a projection and distorted
Favorite pigmentWatercolor
The most beautiful coast?Canada because of many islands.
The best place to get lost?India.
Digital or analog?Both have their place, it depends on the task.
One tool you can't live without?Hands.
What's on your desk right now?A pile of papers.
If you weren't a globetrotter, would you be...?Architect or renovator of houses. I started in the 40s.
