00:00 Snow globes have a fascinating backstory that may surprise you.

01:51 Snow globes were originally created as a way to create a more intense flashlight effect using a glass globe filled with water in front of a candle, and the inventor stumbled upon the idea while trying to make surgical instruments brighter for a local surgeon.

03:53 Pertzi is credited as the inventor of the snow globe, but there were earlier versions of snow globes, including one displayed at the Paris Exposition of 1878 and a German alchemist who made a globe filled with birds in 1572.

05:59 Pertzi is credited as the inventor of the snow globe, but the French also claim to be the inventors, and Pertzi took the idea and ran with it.

07:58 Pretzi invented the snow globe and filed for a patent in 1900, and his family still runs the original Vienna snow globe factory today, making high-end snow globes and taking custom orders.

10:18 Snow globes were initially associated with religious themes and were sold as religious souvenirs, but after World War II, they started including Santa Claus, Christmas trees, and snowmen, becoming heavily associated with Christmas, and by the mid-20th century, they became an American phenomenon and a popular souvenir during the post-war boom.

12:38 Innovations in plastic allowed for the creation of snow globes with longer-lasting snowfalls, with some lasting up to two minutes after being shaken.