When it comes to celebrating the holiday season, Josef Kardinal can get a bit obsessive. He has ramped up his Christmas spirit by owning more than 11,000 snow globes, the largest collection in the world. Kardinal first earned his Guinness World Record back in 2002 when he owned a mere 6,100 snow globes. He continued to amass the winter treasures, which have now grown to 11,017. His collection began in 1984 and ranges from eccentric pieces like a Harley Davidson-themed globe that makes motorcycle sounds when it's shaken, to a replica of the Titanic that appears to be sinking. Kardinal keeps the winter wonderland globes in the basement of his Nuremberg home. The oldest snow globe in his collection was made in 1889 in Paris and has an Eiffel Tower inside. His smallest globe is the size of a fingernail and doubles as a wearable pin. He even has a couple from the COVID-19 pandemic — a globe with a roll of toilet paper inside and another with a snowman wearing a mask. No snow globe collection is complete without one that pays homage to Taylor Swift. Kardinal’s globe holds a mini typewriter from Swift’s 2024 album “The Tortured Poets Department,” and when it’s shaken, pages with her lyrics swirl around inside. Preservation is very important to Kardinal, who regularly shakes the domes and replenishes them with distilled water to keep the “snow” falling properly.
