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Vision Aids are amazing! Their history is truly fascinating! As works of art, they have a beauty all their own! |
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Certainly one of the most significant
inventions of all time, they are symbols of man's incredible ingenuity and craftsmanship! |
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Embrace the profound impact that spectacles alone have had on the human
experience over the past 730 years. |
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Yet they are taken for granted by nearly everyone worldwide! |
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Starting with the
Introduction and
Goals, wander through this non-commercial, not
for profit, website. You may find it enlightening and informative to learn
about these wonderful items many of us use daily. Look at the
Table of Contents. This website is the result of
the collaboration of International educators and is for everyone’s interest
and enjoyment. It is the place where we celebrate vision aids, (and the
optical lens), especially
spectacles. The Real Numbers of this
website keep growing because Interesting
Topics and Slideshows are added
regularly. All this would not have been possible without the wonderful
support of many noteworthy Contributing
Individuals and Participating
Institutions. To improve navigation of the website, we have added
Quick Links for people with special interests.
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Georges De La Tour (1593-1652), Saint Jerome Reading a Letter,
French, oil on canvas, 1620’s, on display at the Museo del Prado, permission
granted by the Department of Employment and Social Security of the Government of Spain. |
Solid gold, single draw spyglass, hand painted enamel on the handle,
late 18th c., from the Collection of Baroness Salomon de Rothschild, born Adele
von Rothschild (1843-1922). Earlier, the spyglass belonged to her father, Baron
Mayer Karl von Rothschild (1820-1886), Musée National de la Renaissance, Château
d'Ecouen, France. Possibly unique. |
Tortoiseshell, English, circa 1830. Front +1.25, right side – 15.00 diopters,
left side + 5.50 diopters. These function like a telescope because of the extra
side lenses. This creates the equivalent of a basic Galilean telescope; the
concave lens serves as the ocular lens (eyepiece) while the convex lens serves
as the objective. Probably unique. |
Domingo Echevarria, “Chavarito" (1676-1751), Death of Holy Teresa,
oil on canvas,: c. 1712-1715, Inv. #CE-0251-04, Copyright Museo de Bellas Artes
de Granada |
Charles Spencelayh, Fingerprints, 1953, oil on canvas, Russell-Cotes Art
Gallery and Museum, Bournemouth, UK |
Prism spectacles, part of a prism exercise set, used to strengthen
horizontal ocular muscles, circa early 20th century, courtesy of University of
NY, State College of Optometry |
Polyhedron multifaceted lenses, horn frame, rock crystal, provenance the
collection of druggist Heinrich Linck (1638-1717), courtesy Museum
Waldenburg, Waldenburg, Germany |
The Astronomers from the Story of the Emperor of China Series, French
tapestry, from the Beauvais tapestry manufactory, circa 1700, wool and silk,
13 feet 11 inches x 10 feet 5 ½ inches, as seen on Wikipedia |
Move your mouse over any of the images in this website
for a larger view.
The images on this page are replaced several times a year.
Previously used images
are available in three separate slide shows. |
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