On 18/12/2016 07:15, wrote:

Okay, so I'm retired and have too much time on my hands. But I was sitting
looking at a nice globe I have, made from gemstones, and got wondering, who
decided on how we perceive earths orientation. I mean, with the "north pole" at
the top. Obviously from space, we could very easily see it "upside down". Who
decides these things? Like I said, a stupid question, but I had to ask.

Apparently Homer is considered the founding father of geography, but
other Greeks studied it too. Greek astronomy had established that the
Earth was a sphere by the 3rd century BC, and terrestrial globes
first appeared at that time. Aristarchus was a significant Greek
astronomer.