Spectacles and Contact Lenses: a Journey Back in Time

Barring the exception of appearance, there is hardly any difference between Prescription glasses and contact lenses, if we consider the technology applied in preparing both. However, when it comes to popularity, contact lenses seemed to have ranked higher than glasses. There are thirty-five million users of contact lenses in the United States today- people who have switched loyalties from glasses to the more stylish lenses. A majority of people, though, feel discomfort wearing lenses initially. However, the benefits of using lenses far outnumber their disadvantages.

The History of Glasses:

The invention of glasses has variously influenced the progress in sciences and arts. However, not much is known about the early history of glasses. Way back in the year 1270, the noted traveler Marco Polo is said to have spotted a Chinese man using glasses- something they claim originated in Arabia before coming to China.

Spectacles entered the western world sometime around the twelfth century. Scholars and monks were the first people to use glasses, holding them either in front of their eyes or balancing them on noses. It was not until 1452 that glasses or spectacles caught the mass rage. The invention of printing press played a huge role in augmenting the popularity of glasses. Reading books became a hobby among people and those with eyesight problems had no option but to resort to glasses for a better reading experience.

Frame designs underwent thorough experimentation in the sixteenth century. Rigid bridges were invented to keep the glasses balanced and put them in a place. Today, there are different varieties for glass frames available in the market. With the steady emergence of the new breed of designer frames, wearing glasses have become a fashion statement.

The History of Contact Lenses:

If you thought that Contact lenses were invented recently, you are wrong. The history of contact lenses goes a long way back to the middle ages. Leonardo Da Vinci is credited with sketching and laying the initial blueprints for what centuries later would come to be known as contact lenses.

Julia Roger - About Author:
For more information on Contact lenses, check out the info available online; these will help you learn to find the Prescription glasses!

Article Source:
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