Weatherwatch: A history of making snowmen

Snow has blanketed the UK for much of December, and, for the more child-like of us, building a snowman became an essential task. But where did the idea of making snowmen come from, and who did it first?Unfortunately, history is not rich in documents about the building of snowmen. However, Bob Eckstein, author of The History of the Snowman, has looked for artistic impressions of snowmen, and managed to trace the practice back to medieval times. The earliest evidence he could find was a rather shaky illustration of a snowman in a Book of Hours, dated 1380, from the Koninklijke Bibliotheek, in The Hague.Today people use many different styles to build their snowmen. In Europe and North America snowmen are usually formed from three snowballs, while people in east Asia tend to favour two spheres. The world's largest snowman to date was in fact a snow-lady, built in Bethel, Maine, in the US, in 2008. Olympia Snowe, as she was known, stood just over 37 metres tall.Whatever the shape and size of your snowman, the best kind of snow for it is moist snow, when it is close to melting point and fairly compact.Unlike powdery snow, moist snow is sticky and rolls easily into large balls. Waiting for a sunny afternoon, a day or two after the snow has first fallen, gives you a good chance of finding the perfect snow. There is even a world day of snowman, celebrated on 18 January every year.WeatherThe Hagueguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Ruka holidays Ruka ski holidays Ruka Kuusamo