Vintage Japanese Climate Globe Set “Kankyō Chikyofu”, 1980s

Dimensions: height 27 cm, diameter 26 cm.

The original boxes show the Japanese name “kankyō chikyofu”, meaning “environmental globe chart”, with two editions: [2月] February and [8月] August. Together they present, in a highly graphic way, how current patterns and temperatures change throughout the year.

The globes are strikingly colourful, with a clear system of arrows and colour zones. The legend on the globe indicates water temperature on a scale from -2 to 45°C, and also explains the speed of the ocean currents: fast flow, slow flow, and a broad/large-scale flow. The credit reads: © Global Planning, S. Tanaka.

Today these make fantastic decorative collector’s pieces for a desk, studio, or library: sculptural, colourful, and genuinely informative, with that distinctly Japanese “design as information” feel.

Condition: in very nice, well-kept condition, with the original packaging.