Reading Glasses – A must for someone in their 40’s!
Recently, I discovered how much clearer I could read by purchasing a pair of $10 reading glasses at Walmart. I began to think about how glasses probably affected people in the Renaissance period. How did eyeglasses help in contributing to the Information Renaissance? I decided to research the history of “spectacles” as they were called in 1284.
The first vision aid was actually invented around 1000AD, it was a reading stone. This was a glass sphere that they laid upon the material to be read to magnify the letters. The reading stone was a magnifying glass. The credit for actual “eyeglasses” is unclear. Consistent information in research shows that most agree that eyeglasses were invented in the 1200’s but credit is actually given to more than one individual. One thing for certain is that people in Italy are given the recognition for the invention. I think everyone should keep in mind that although Guttenberg invented the printing press during the Renaissance, people were reading hand written material long before that! Here is one more interesting tidbit….Benjamin Franklin invented bifocals. I am truly amazed at what this individual was able to invent. He was always thinking! Wouldn’t it be a true statement to believe that eyeglasses contributed to the increase of reading? After all….that’s why they were invented.