By all appearances, aids in the function of a pair of eye - glasses [this is the optical aids with lens such optical intensity to be able to create a sharp picture with a human lens] had not been existed in antiquity. One letter written by prominent Roman from 14^th century before Christ was been saved in which he complained that he could not read because of his old age and illness and so he is thrown upon his slaves. Even if Roman Caesar Nero used emerald during following gladiator’s wrestling, it was only for its green colour and filtration of the sunrays. Nevertheless enlarging like this was known already: Ptolemaios mentioned it in his general principles and so Seneca used to read books a glasses globe fulfilled by water in the beginning of 1st century of our age.

The oldest known lens was found in the ruins of antique castle Ninive. They were produced from quartz and they had a diameter nearly 4 cm. Aristofanes was writing about ” glasses ” for burning out of slots in parchment for erasing text on wax desks, doctors used it for burning of wound according to Plinius Older.

About the end of 1000 year so called reading, stone was discovered since it has been producing [Venice’s produced it] and it is glass globe peak, which was put to reading text to enlarge it. The long-sighted monks used it especially.

This stone was described by English philosopher Roger Bacon in 1289 while in one Italian Chronicle is only a mention about glasses it is about lens bind in rings. They must have been invented in this time. Sometimes Salvino D` Armate from Pisa is mentioned as their inventor, Latest sources shows to Dominican`s monk Alessandro Spina from Florence. First known art – working up the theme with glasses was appeared in 1352[Tommaso di Modena].

The replica of glasses of bones from 15 century

Konkávní čočky - vhodné pro krátkozraké - se objevují až v 16. stol. Mimo jiné je používal papež Leo X, který byl velmi krátkozraký.

Od okamžiku vzniku brýlí řešili jejich výrobci problém jejich správného usazení (upevnění), a to jak z hlediska mechanického tak optického. Trvalo jim to 350 let. Španělští výrobci v 17. stol. experimentovali s hedvábnými stužkami připevněnými k obroučkám a tvořících smyčku kolem uší. Později španělští a italští misionáři začali používat - po čínském způsobu - místo smyček keramická nebo kovová závaží. Konečně v roce 1730 londýnský optik Edward Scarlett představuje pevné postranice, které se opírají o horní část ucha. Tento způsob se rychle rozšířil na celý kontinent. Ale už roku 1752 je tu další vynález Jamese Ayscougha: postranice s dvojím čepem (“pantem”), které se nechají "ohýbat". Jejich popularita byla obrovská a zanedlouho se objevují na všech druzích maleb i v tisku. Rozšířily se opět velmi rychle, přestože nebyly levné: literárně vzdělaní američtí kolonisté za ně platili 200 dolarů!

So called ” lorn`on” was next invention from 18^th century
[Englishman George Adams]. It was held in a hand.
(from http://www.antiqueantics.com/silver1.htm)

So called ” cvikr ” which was fixed on nose appeared itself about 1840.
It was much spread and had many shapes.

In 1780, Benjamin Franklin discovered so – called bifocal lens it was lens with double focal distance. The glasses with such lens compensated two glasses to long distance and to short distance. In spite of undisputed advantages that glasses started to use not before the first half of 19^th century. Then John Isaak Havkins started to use the word ” bifocal ”[he let patent so three – focal lens in 1827]. The bifocal lens was cemented from two parts they were plain and in the place of connection was dirty. In 1908, Borch let have patented the connection of both lens with melting down [according to earlier idea of Wecker].

In the end of 19^th century the buying of glasses it was matter only a merchant still: The Merchant asked about the age of a costumer and a price of asked glasses and than he tried to him a single glasses so long until the costumer was satisfied.