The Victorian perspective on spectacles

“Men don’t make passes at girls who wear glasses”

“The 19th century saw many new aspects in contemporary life, such as reading for leisure, faster transportation and compulsory education, all of which necessitated a high degree of visual acuity.”

Do you know which of your ancestors needed corrective lenses? Who needed them but didn’t wear them? Did any of them wear glasses, or spectacles, as a fashion statement?

From the Wellcome Collection, based on research by Gemma Almond, comes an online story on the history of spectacles.

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