Last fall, Lingon posted about a commission he (and I) got for some globes representing Earth through geological history.

Lingon completed his quicker than I did, and posted them here: http://www.cartographersguild.com/sh...ad.php?t=31549

I finished mine later in the fall, but I'm finally ready to show them.

These were a commission from Richard Garriott to paint physical 6" wooden globes to display with his fossil collection, showing the Earth as it was in earlier geological eras.

I chose a slightly different set of time periods, going further back than Lingon did, so the dates of the globes are different than his.


The times I chose were

Vaalbara 3.5 Billion years ago, land was formed but no oceans yet, lots of huge volcanoes (think Olympus Mons), life just starting in the warm shallow waters beginning to accumulate.

Columbia 2 Billion years ago, a time of global cold, sometimes called the "snowball Earth", tectonics well underway so lots of mountains and oceans, with only single-celled life in the oceans.

Rodinia 1 Billion years ago, landmasses fragmenting and separating, still only single-celled life in the oceans

Pannotia 500 Million years ago, continents separating and colliding, land and ocean similar to today, with life spreading to the land, mostly in the form of algae and primitive plants.

Pangaea 250 Million years ago, warm and humid, rich terrestrial and marine life, including reptiles, birds, and dinosaurs on land, fish and shelled animals in the seas.

Modern 0 years ago, cool and rich with life.

The six globes

Six Globes.JPG

Closeup of Columbia

Closeup of Columbia.JPG

Vaalbara and Columbia

Vaalbara and Columbia.JPG

Rodinia and Pannotia

Rodinia and Pannotia.JPG

Pangaea and Modern

Pangaea and Modern.JPG

I'm hoping Richard will send me a photo of the globes standing in his geological collection.