Interesting facts about glasses you might not know

The first wearable glasses appeared in Italy

The first wearable glasses appeared in Italy, Glasses were designed to be manually held in place, Benjamin Franklin also contributed to the development of glasses, The "Martin’s Margins" are named after the inventor, The first anti-glare glasses with polarization, Sunglasses were invented in the 12th century, Mass production of sunglasses, Chameleons, Approximately four billion people wear glasses, Glasses can improve vision permanently, Plastic lenses were introduced in the '80s, Wearing a different prescription for a long time can damage your eyes, The power of an eyeglass is measured in diopters, A signature look, Safety glasses

The earliest known example of wearable eyeglasses dates back to 13th-century Italy. A man named Salvino degli Armati is credited for the invention.

Glasses were designed to be manually held in place

The first wearable glasses appeared in Italy, Glasses were designed to be manually held in place, Benjamin Franklin also contributed to the development of glasses, The "Martin’s Margins" are named after the inventor, The first anti-glare glasses with polarization, Sunglasses were invented in the 12th century, Mass production of sunglasses, Chameleons, Approximately four billion people wear glasses, Glasses can improve vision permanently, Plastic lenses were introduced in the '80s, Wearing a different prescription for a long time can damage your eyes, The power of an eyeglass is measured in diopters, A signature look, Safety glasses

Holding glasses by hand, or leaving them on the nose without temples or earpieces for support, was a daily routine in the 16th century.

Benjamin Franklin also contributed to the development of glasses

The first wearable glasses appeared in Italy, Glasses were designed to be manually held in place, Benjamin Franklin also contributed to the development of glasses, The "Martin’s Margins" are named after the inventor, The first anti-glare glasses with polarization, Sunglasses were invented in the 12th century, Mass production of sunglasses, Chameleons, Approximately four billion people wear glasses, Glasses can improve vision permanently, Plastic lenses were introduced in the '80s, Wearing a different prescription for a long time can damage your eyes, The power of an eyeglass is measured in diopters, A signature look, Safety glasses

Many don't know this, but one of the Founding Fathers of the US, Benjamin Franklin, invented the bifocal lens. It helped people with both myopia (nearsightedness) and hypertropia (misalignment of the eyes) see using only one pair of glasses.

The "Martin’s Margins" are named after the inventor

The first wearable glasses appeared in Italy, Glasses were designed to be manually held in place, Benjamin Franklin also contributed to the development of glasses, The "Martin’s Margins" are named after the inventor, The first anti-glare glasses with polarization, Sunglasses were invented in the 12th century, Mass production of sunglasses, Chameleons, Approximately four billion people wear glasses, Glasses can improve vision permanently, Plastic lenses were introduced in the '80s, Wearing a different prescription for a long time can damage your eyes, The power of an eyeglass is measured in diopters, A signature look, Safety glasses

Named after its inventor, Benjamin Martin, these 18th-century glasses had dark rims meant to improve user vision, as well as protect them from excessive light. The frames were in silver and the lenses were round.

The first anti-glare glasses with polarization

The first wearable glasses appeared in Italy, Glasses were designed to be manually held in place, Benjamin Franklin also contributed to the development of glasses, The "Martin’s Margins" are named after the inventor, The first anti-glare glasses with polarization, Sunglasses were invented in the 12th century, Mass production of sunglasses, Chameleons, Approximately four billion people wear glasses, Glasses can improve vision permanently, Plastic lenses were introduced in the '80s, Wearing a different prescription for a long time can damage your eyes, The power of an eyeglass is measured in diopters, A signature look, Safety glasses

In the 1920s, Edwin Land, inventor of the instant photography method and co-founder of the Polaroid Corporation, created the first anti-glare glasses with polarization.

Sunglasses were invented in the 12th century

The first wearable glasses appeared in Italy, Glasses were designed to be manually held in place, Benjamin Franklin also contributed to the development of glasses, The "Martin’s Margins" are named after the inventor, The first anti-glare glasses with polarization, Sunglasses were invented in the 12th century, Mass production of sunglasses, Chameleons, Approximately four billion people wear glasses, Glasses can improve vision permanently, Plastic lenses were introduced in the '80s, Wearing a different prescription for a long time can damage your eyes, The power of an eyeglass is measured in diopters, A signature look, Safety glasses

Previously believed to have been invented in the 20th century, these accessories actually came into existence in 12th-century China. Their purpose was to obscure judges' eyes while they were in court listening to cases.

Mass production of sunglasses

The first wearable glasses appeared in Italy, Glasses were designed to be manually held in place, Benjamin Franklin also contributed to the development of glasses, The "Martin’s Margins" are named after the inventor, The first anti-glare glasses with polarization, Sunglasses were invented in the 12th century, Mass production of sunglasses, Chameleons, Approximately four billion people wear glasses, Glasses can improve vision permanently, Plastic lenses were introduced in the '80s, Wearing a different prescription for a long time can damage your eyes, The power of an eyeglass is measured in diopters, A signature look, Safety glasses

In 1929, the mass production of affordable sunglasses began after American brand Foster Grant started selling them on Atlantic City beaches.

Chameleons

The first wearable glasses appeared in Italy, Glasses were designed to be manually held in place, Benjamin Franklin also contributed to the development of glasses, The "Martin’s Margins" are named after the inventor, The first anti-glare glasses with polarization, Sunglasses were invented in the 12th century, Mass production of sunglasses, Chameleons, Approximately four billion people wear glasses, Glasses can improve vision permanently, Plastic lenses were introduced in the '80s, Wearing a different prescription for a long time can damage your eyes, The power of an eyeglass is measured in diopters, A signature look, Safety glasses

Photochromic glasses, aka chameleons, were invented in the '60s in France. The lenses have the ability to change shades of darkness according to the light intensity of the environment.

Approximately four billion people wear glasses

The first wearable glasses appeared in Italy, Glasses were designed to be manually held in place, Benjamin Franklin also contributed to the development of glasses, The "Martin’s Margins" are named after the inventor, The first anti-glare glasses with polarization, Sunglasses were invented in the 12th century, Mass production of sunglasses, Chameleons, Approximately four billion people wear glasses, Glasses can improve vision permanently, Plastic lenses were introduced in the '80s, Wearing a different prescription for a long time can damage your eyes, The power of an eyeglass is measured in diopters, A signature look, Safety glasses

According to statistics from the Vision Council of America, about 75% of the adult population worldwide uses vision correction products, and 64% of them wear glasses.

Glasses can improve vision permanently

The first wearable glasses appeared in Italy, Glasses were designed to be manually held in place, Benjamin Franklin also contributed to the development of glasses, The "Martin’s Margins" are named after the inventor, The first anti-glare glasses with polarization, Sunglasses were invented in the 12th century, Mass production of sunglasses, Chameleons, Approximately four billion people wear glasses, Glasses can improve vision permanently, Plastic lenses were introduced in the '80s, Wearing a different prescription for a long time can damage your eyes, The power of an eyeglass is measured in diopters, A signature look, Safety glasses

While these cases are rare, it can happen if the individual has amblyopia or strabismus. Amblyopia is commonly known as lazy eye, and strabismus is when one is crossed eyed.

Plastic lenses were introduced in the '80s

The first wearable glasses appeared in Italy, Glasses were designed to be manually held in place, Benjamin Franklin also contributed to the development of glasses, The "Martin’s Margins" are named after the inventor, The first anti-glare glasses with polarization, Sunglasses were invented in the 12th century, Mass production of sunglasses, Chameleons, Approximately four billion people wear glasses, Glasses can improve vision permanently, Plastic lenses were introduced in the '80s, Wearing a different prescription for a long time can damage your eyes, The power of an eyeglass is measured in diopters, A signature look, Safety glasses

Thanks to technological advances, lenses became lighter and thinner. Plastic lenses are also less breakable, and have various coatings added in layers to reduce UV light and glare.

Wearing a different prescription for a long time can damage your eyes

The first wearable glasses appeared in Italy, Glasses were designed to be manually held in place, Benjamin Franklin also contributed to the development of glasses, The "Martin’s Margins" are named after the inventor, The first anti-glare glasses with polarization, Sunglasses were invented in the 12th century, Mass production of sunglasses, Chameleons, Approximately four billion people wear glasses, Glasses can improve vision permanently, Plastic lenses were introduced in the '80s, Wearing a different prescription for a long time can damage your eyes, The power of an eyeglass is measured in diopters, A signature look, Safety glasses

Some people believe that wearing somebody else’s glasses for a couple of minutes will permanently damage an individual’s eyes. In reality, the only thing you'll experience are headaches caused by eye strain or eye fatigue. However, if you wear them for an extended period, then that's a different story.

The power of an eyeglass is measured in diopters

The first wearable glasses appeared in Italy, Glasses were designed to be manually held in place, Benjamin Franklin also contributed to the development of glasses, The "Martin’s Margins" are named after the inventor, The first anti-glare glasses with polarization, Sunglasses were invented in the 12th century, Mass production of sunglasses, Chameleons, Approximately four billion people wear glasses, Glasses can improve vision permanently, Plastic lenses were introduced in the '80s, Wearing a different prescription for a long time can damage your eyes, The power of an eyeglass is measured in diopters, A signature look, Safety glasses

How strong or weak your glasses are will be evaluated using the diopter. This measurement is vital in determining the lens’ magnification level for the individual’s requirements.

A signature look

The first wearable glasses appeared in Italy, Glasses were designed to be manually held in place, Benjamin Franklin also contributed to the development of glasses, The "Martin’s Margins" are named after the inventor, The first anti-glare glasses with polarization, Sunglasses were invented in the 12th century, Mass production of sunglasses, Chameleons, Approximately four billion people wear glasses, Glasses can improve vision permanently, Plastic lenses were introduced in the '80s, Wearing a different prescription for a long time can damage your eyes, The power of an eyeglass is measured in diopters, A signature look, Safety glasses

Rounded glasses with thin frames became popular in the '60s thanks to John Lennon, whose signature look always included them.

Safety glasses

The first wearable glasses appeared in Italy, Glasses were designed to be manually held in place, Benjamin Franklin also contributed to the development of glasses, The "Martin’s Margins" are named after the inventor, The first anti-glare glasses with polarization, Sunglasses were invented in the 12th century, Mass production of sunglasses, Chameleons, Approximately four billion people wear glasses, Glasses can improve vision permanently, Plastic lenses were introduced in the '80s, Wearing a different prescription for a long time can damage your eyes, The power of an eyeglass is measured in diopters, A signature look, Safety glasses

Designed to protect the eyes of people working in environments that can permanently blind them, safety glasses are also an important piece of eyewear.