In the early 1200s in Venice, early craftsmen knew that shaping rock crystals into convex shapes could form “lapides ad legendum”, also called “oglarii di vitro”, or the so-called “stones for reading”. Regular use of these reading stones dated back to 1000 AD. However, the Capitulary of the Guild of “Crystal Craftsmen” allowed the use of these “reading stones” as magnifying lenses. The stones were placed on top of any surface with inscriptions and helped in the clarity of one’s vision while reading the text or viewing an object. The carvers and polishers of these rock crystals were then established as an important guild in Venice.
During this period, the artisans created “roidi da boticelis” (also called “round glass for the eyes”) or crystal discs which made any kind of object become clearer and visible when placed against each other. By 1284, these discs were seen placed in production lines.
Despite all of these inventions, however, the reading stones were still a far cry from the eyeglasses we see and wear nowadays. Not until the 13th century, when artisans from Murano, a small island to the north of Venice, went the extra mile to pioneer the manufacture of glass. Despite the fact that keeping the formula of glassmaking a secret, not to mention, a matter of life and death, these dedicated cristalleri or glassmakers etched Murano at the heart of glassworks. Nevertheless, the cristalleri guild, despite restrictions, permitted non-Venetians in the manufacturing of glasses, called “forestieri” or non-Venetians (including non-Italians), such as Florentines and Geonese. Tuscans, particularly Florentines, joined the trade, not only as craftsmen but also as merchants, importing and exporting goods through Venice. At this point in time, the whole world looked up to Italy as the market leader in the production of white glass used as visual aids.
In 1301, artisans were finally allowed to create “vitreos to oculis ad legendum“ (glass lenses for reading) under the sanction of the Giustizieri Vecchi, the superintendents of Venetian Arts. And upon discovery of the transparent and colorless glass pastes, lenses became more affordable and accessible to the public. This was followed by the invention of the first eyeglasses. The materials of this pair of rivet glasses were made of round biconvex lenses and each was
held in a wooden ring with a shaft and connected with a rivet. The pair was used by holding in front of the eyes. In 1352, in the Dominican Monastery of San Nicolo in Treviso, reading glass and double-rivet glasses were painted in the frescoes by Tomaso de Modena, a famous 14th-century Italian artist.
In addition, it was earlier believed that Salvino degli Armati of Florence invented the first wearable eyeglasses in Italy around 1284. But, various scholars have discredited this claim, particularly by distinguished 13-14th century historian and member of the Italian Senate, Isidoro del Lungo, pointing out a “lexicographer blunder”.
Indeed, Italy piloted the invention of eyeglasses as early as 1300, and currently promotes the largest conglomerate of licensed designer eyeglasses worldwide.
Feature Image: An artwork depicting bespectacled people in a spectacle market. Artwork: CONSPICILLA / de uitvinding van de bril (The Invention of Glasses), Jan Collaert the Elder, Philip Galle, Stradanus, 1589/1593. (Source: cdn.rijksmuseum.nl)
