We are used to thinking of sunglasses as an accessory for the sunny South, but in fact, their birthplace is snowy expanses.
The Primary Task: Protecting the Eyes
| Today, when sunglasses are a fashion accessory, it is important to remember that their primary purpose is actually to protect the eyes from the sun's rays. History illustrates this perfectly. The earliest evidence of an implement similar to sunglasses comes from the Inuit communities in the Arctic. As far back as 2,000 years ago, they carved them from driftwood, walrus tusks, and reindeer antlers. The tightly fitting "eye covers" had narrow slits that allowed minimal sunlight to enter, thus protecting the wearer from glare. | 
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The ancient Romans thought along similar lines but came up with a different result. History shows that Emperor Nero watched gladiator fights through polished gemstones. It must be said that this was a rather expensive, but not very effective, invention. In 12th-century China, judges used slabs of grey quartz. Historians still debate their function—they may have been used to hide facial expressions and reactions. |
The Origins of Spectacles
| Spectacles as we know them today—glass lenses held together by a wire—appeared in the 18th century. At that time, a man named James Ayscough experimented with colored lenses, believing that different shades could help cure various eye ailments. Of course, he had no idea that a few centuries later his invention would become a fashion accessory. | 
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Sunglasses gained wider public approval at the beginning of the 20th century. In the first decades, they were used medically—to protect people with eye diseases from glare. In the 1920s, more and more celebrities used them as a fashion accessory, but not only that. Very soon, they served as a barrier between them and the public and were also worn indoors and in the evenings. Sunglasses became a great way to hide their party-weary eyes, as well as to disguise themselves from celebrity hunters and the dazzling spotlights of photo and film studios. |
Mass Production
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And, as is known, what celebrities like, the whole world soon desires. In the late 1920s, an astute businessman named Sam Foster began making glasses from celluloid and selling them on beaches. Thus began the first wave of mass production. In the late 1930s, U.S. Life Magazine reported that 20 million pairs of sunglasses were sold in America in one year, and that only 25% of buyers wore them to protect their eyes from the sun. That's how this accessory, so vital for health, became a fashion accessory. |
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Incidentally, the beginnings of the world-renowned Ray-Ban brand can also be traced back to the 1930s. Its parent company, Bausch and Lomb, manufactured glasses for military pilots under a government contract, thus creating the well-known Aviator glasses of today. Ray-Ban still produces frames of this same design. If you also want to protect your eyes from UV radiation during the autumn and winter season, go to www.bergamo.lv or the Bergamo store at Sky&More, where you can also find the original Ray-Ban Aviator frames. |
