The Times Square New Year's Eve crystal ball, first used in 1907 is all set to ring in 2017 over this weekend. This year's ball features a new crystal design called the Gift of Kindness, with 288 crystals cut into rosettes to symbolize unity, according to the Times Square Alliance.
The nearly 12,000-pound crystal ball will be illuminated with thousands of LED bulbs on the New Years Eve in New York.
The tradition of dropping a ball to mark a moment dates back to the 19th century, but it didn't originate as a New Year's Eve custom. 'Time balls' were once displayed in harbors and lowered daily to signal a certain time of day so that ships could precisely set the chronometers they used for navigation. The New Year's Eve tradition began in 1907 when a time ball was dropped as part of a public celebration hosted by The New York Times at its building in Times Square, foreign media reported.
It was originally made of iron, wood and 25-watt lightbulbs. The ball will drop Saturday night in the moments leading up to midnight. Starting at exactly one minute before midnight on New Year's Eve, the ball will begin its descent down a specially designed pole.
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