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Home & Kitchen
Galileo Thermometer — science you can put on a shelf
Lily's Home Galileo Thermometer (11 in, 5 Spheres)
Reviewed by the WhyToBuyThis team · Updated September 2026 · How we choose
Perfect for
- Science lovers
- Desk & shelf decor
- Under $25
- Physics teachers
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Price: $26.99
Price may change on Amazon. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. This won't cost you anything extra.
- Great gift ideaChosen for real-world gifting
- Hand-pickedCurated, not scraped
- Honest reviewThe catch, not just the hype
Why this gift works
This Lily's Home Galileo thermometer is an 11-inch sealed glass cylinder of clear liquid - an inert oil-hydrocarbon mix similar to mineral oil, per the maker - with five colored glass spheres, each tagged with a temperature. Here is how a Galileo thermometer works: as the room warms or cools, the liquid's density changes and the spheres rise or sink, and the lowest floating sphere shows the temperature, from 64 to 80 degrees F in 4-degree steps.
It is a working piece of 17th-century physics - the design came from the Accademia del Cimento in Florence and was later named after Galileo - and it looks lovely on a desk or bookshelf. An easy, inexpensive gift for anyone who likes their decor to have a reason.
Who is this gift for?
Great for
- A science teacher's classroom
- A home office bookshelf
Think twice if
- They want precise temperature readings
The catch
It reads in coarse 4-degree steps over a narrow 64-80 degree range, it responds slowly, and it is glass, so it needs a safe spot.
Skip for someone who wants an accurate thermostat reading - it is a display piece first.
Key specs
| Brand | Lily's Home |
|---|---|
| Model | SWGL05 |
| Height | 11 in |
| Spheres | 5, with gold-plated temperature tags |
| Range | 64-80 degrees F, 4-degree steps |
| Accuracy | Within 2 degrees F (maker) |
| Liquid | Inert oil-hydrocarbon mix, similar to mineral oil (maker) |
| Glass | Laboratory-grade glass |
| Use | Indoor (maker) |
Worth knowing before you buy
- Keep it out of direct sun, which can skew the reading.
- It is 11 inches tall.
Why we like it
- A real physics demonstration
- Pretty colored glass floats
- Inexpensive and easy to give
How to read a Galileo thermometer
- Set it out of direct sun and away from heaters and drafts, and give it time to settle after it has been moved.
- Look at the spheres floating near the top. The tag on the lowest of them is the temperature.
- A sphere hanging in the middle of the cylinder is the closest reading of all.
What to look for in a Galileo thermometer
- Range. Check the range matches the room it will sit in.
- Size. Taller models with more spheres read in smaller steps.
- Placement. Keep it out of direct sun and away from heaters.
Questions people ask
Read the tag on the lowest of the spheres floating near the top, per Lily's Home.
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