The United States man of scientific discipline, Ben Franklin, who endured both nearsightedness as well as presbyopia, devised bifocals in 1784 to obviate having to frequently switch betwixt two sets of eyeglasses.

The original lens pair intended for correcting astigmia were manufactured by the British astronomer George Airy in 1825.

Along the history of bi-focal reading glasses, the development of pectacle frames also evolved. Early on glasses were contrived to be either held in place with your hand or by maintaining force on the bridge of the nose. Girolamo Savonarola advised that oculars could be held in place with a ribbon placed over the subject’s head, which in turn was fastened by the weight of one’s hat.

Entering modern bifocal history, the contemporary fashion of bifocal reading glasses supported by temples passing over the ears, was produced in 1727 by the British lens maker Edward Scarlett. These designs were not at once prosperous, however, and assorted styles with attached handles like “scissors-glasses” and lorgnettes stayed fashionable throughout the eighteenth and into the early nineteenth century.

In the early twentieth century, Moritz von Rohr at Zeiss made the Zeiss Punktal spherical point-focus lens system which dominated the eyeglass lens domain for many years.

Despite the rising fame of contacts and laser restorative eye surgery, spectacles remain rather common, as their technology has continued to evolve. For example, it’s currently possible to buy frames constituted of special memory metal alloys that return to their correct configuration after being bent. Other frames have spring-loaded hinges.

Glasses have come a long way, haven’t they? In fact, today you can even buy rimless bifocal glasses.

Many of these modern contraptions are also distinctly better able to resist the challenges of day-to-day wear and the periodic accident. Modern frames are likewise ofttimes constructed from solid, light-weight materials such as titanium alloys which weren’t available in earlier days.

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