The History of Eyewear

殷都眼镜

<p> <p>


<p>The curiosity to learn what was behind the history of glasses was the cause of knowledgeable disputes right from the second half of the seventeenth century; once Ruggero Bacone, in the thirteenth century, discarded the theory of classical, oriental or English origins, it was declared that their home was Tuscany, or alternatively Pisa or Florence, but this statement was based on somewhat dubious evidence. It was only in 1920 that Giuseppe Albertotti vindicated Venice's credit, founded on known documents that had been published for years but it was not until later that they had ever been evaluated from that aspect. The theory that glasses are of Venetian origin seems well founded from investigations made by other authors. According to several historians, the "discovery" of spectacles is thought to be more of a thing of chance than the outcome of programmed research. It was not the undertaking of glass makers but of cristallieri, a flourishing branch of Venetian gold craftsmen, dedicated to working on quartz or rock crystal; this precious raw material is offered them by Mother Nature and used to make liturgical and cult objects or even refined ornaments.

As in all medieval counties, the Venetian craftsmen, working in many different branches of production, trade and services, were forced into a myriad of arti or corporations that represented their interests. Every corporation had its own capitolare, that was a statutes. The most ancient capitolare (the first were for tailors in 1229) were collected in a code in 1278, and today they are preserved in the State Archives of Venice.

Although active for some time, the cristallieri didn't have their own capitolare until November 1284. This too included standard and repetitious regulations together with others suited to their specific case; the ban to commit frauds and forgeries is reiterated, a dishonest act and harmful to the good name of art and Venetian trade. The temptation to replace costly, rare rock crystal with transparent, colourless glass must have been strong as it was easily available from the flourishing local production. In this capitolare we have, in near to Vulgar Latin, roidi de botacelis et da ogli and lapides ad legedum. Lapides ad legendum "stones for reading with" are magnifying lenses. On the other hand, with roidi da ogli for the very first time you can see "spectacle lenses", which are by now a standard production.

One year later, on the 15th June 1301 (chap. XLIII), the manufacture of vitreos ab oculis ad legendum (glass for reading spectacles) was liberalized, and everyone could make them only after having taken an oath in front of the judges that they would sell glass for glass. It can be deduced that this product was widely traded on both the domestic and foreign markets and that purchasers preferred the cheaper version; this widespread use was justified not only for reasons of studying and scholarly reading, but also to personally check - and being able to see clearly - trading accounts and correspondence.

In March 1317 the concession made to Francesco is recorded, son of the surgeon Nicolò, who had nothing to do with arte to make oglarios de vitro and to sell them in town; the term spectacles (oglarii) appears here for the first time.

<p>

<p>Documentary evidence is rather lacking on frames. According few theories, having devised a way to make lenses into "nose"spectacles could well have been aided by Tuscany's contribution in improving the invention, thanks to the Dominican Alessandro da Spina, working in the Santa Caterina Convent of Pisa, who died in 1313 and who was for a long time considered ; he knew how to reconstruct the method created by someone else twenty years before. In the centuries that followed, occhialeri, makers and sellers or just sellers of glasses, even those made elsewhere and received from German countries, can be found here and there in Venetian documents and the trade is reported in toponymics. They were not numerous enough to form an independent corporation despite several attempts and in Venice and elsewhere they were united with marzeri (haberdashers), whose shops were filled with many different kinds of goods. Proof of the connection with haberdashers can also be seen in pictures of peddlars loaded with hundreds of different things, glasses among them. Up until not many years ago, in small village markets, you could find stalls selling glasses, just like those today selling sun glasses.

<p>

<p>


<p>