lawn ball

Random questions pop into my head from time to time...Why did Darius Rucker decide to go country? Wasn't Hootie and the Blowfish bad enough? And, while Google is really smart, it doesn't have the answer to all of my questions. 

The other day I was taking a walk in my neighborhood and encountered three "lawn balls" in a two block span. Besides being ugly, I never understood their function. Are they art? Do they scare away the birds? 

Google: "Lawn Ball" 
Result: Nothing helpful, but a bunch of information on lawn bowling. 

Google: "What is the purpose of a lawn ball?" 
Result: "Can someone explain lawn balls?" Ahhhh…getting warmer! It seems as though they go by several different names, including gazing ball and yard globe. 

Now, on to Wikipedia...Gazing balls originated in 13th century Venice where they were hand-blown by skilled Italian craftsmen. King Ludwig II of Bavaria, sometimes referred to as Mad King Ludwig, adorned his Herrenchiemsee palace with lawn balls. Thereafter, they became a fixture of European gardens and are associated with Victorian era English gardens in particular.