WINSTON WEEKLY©[1]

December 21, 2025

Vol. 3, No. 51

WORLD WONDERS[2]

Although Erwin Perzy is hardly a household name, his passion for surgical tools inspired the snow globe, a winter wonder loved worldwide. As Erwin was trying to make a brighter light for surgery, he realized that water particles resembled snow, leading to the creation of the first snow globe. His creation eventually resulted in a storefront in Vienna, Austria where he and his brother, Ludwig, manufactured and sold a variety of snow globes.

More than a century later, Edwin’s family carries on the tradition, producing more than 300,000 snow globes annually in the 17^th District in Vienna. Edwin Perzy, III’s daughter, Sabine, took over the business a couple of years ago. Holding a degree in International Business and working as a skilled toolmaker, Sabine has expanded the website and social media outreach.

The original snow globes contained rice. Today, the “snow” is a closely guarded family secret believed to consist of a combination of wax and plastic particles. In addition to the traditional small snow globes, Vienna is home to two massive globes, one with a replica of Vienna City Hall and another with a replica of St. Stephen’s Church, both surrounded by Christmas markets.

Closer to home, The Frame Workshop in Appleton, Wisconsin stocks and ships a variety of the beloved Vienna snow globes. In addition to a Snowman with Balloon and the Obendorf Silent Night Chapel Perzy Snow Globe, the Workshop carries a replica of the mountainside cabin snow globe featured in the classic movie, Citizen Cane.

WEEKLY ACTIVITY

If you could design a snow globe, what would it be? As you do, consider options for making the snow and whether your globe would include a music box. If so, what music would you include?

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[1] A Sunday newsletter and blog by Alysen Bayles to be shared with the appropriate attribute.

[2]Resources: Original Wiener Schneekugelmanufacturer, Austria (The Original Viennese Snow Globe Manufactory), www.schneekugel.at; https://www.theframeworkshop.com; Connie Moore and Harry Rinker, Snow Globes: The Collector’s Guide to Selecting, Displaying, and Restoring Snow Globes, Knickerbocker Press, 1999.