Description: Three pair of early folding opera glasses. 1. Silver frame, hallmark R & J.B.L. o , a shield with the letter F, a lion in a shield. The back side is marked as measurements, 1 through 5. 2. Metal frame marked with a shamrock and the letter R. DEPOSE and GRAZIELLA. 3. Jumelles Mars theater glasses. Nickel plated, made in France . Hard plastic focus wheel.


History: Opera glasses are needed because the stage is a long way from some of the seats at a play or an opera. The first opera glasses were invented in Vienna in 1823. Mother-of-pearl was a popular decoration on many French glasses. Opera Glasses do not really occur before 1800 although the concept can be traced back to 1606 when the Staten-Generaal of the Dutch Republic rejected Lippershey's application for a patent of the telescope, at the same time calling for a binocular instrument. In 1823 Johann Friedrich Voigtlander (1779-1859), an optician in Vienna, used two bridging frames to fix together the barrels of two identical ivory and gilt spyglasses. Each eye was adjusted separately by means of individual draw tubes. Although his products were a success he may not have been the first to mount two spyglasses together. A retrospective account by the English optician J.T. Hudson, written in 1840, claimed the practice had been going on since 1815. Subsequently Monneret devised a patent screw. By twisting one of the barrels you could cause it to extend. Then, in 1825, Lemière of Paris placed a focusing wheel between the two barrels and furthermore, joined the eyepieces together with a third bridge. Thus the two eyetubes could be adjusted simultaneously, achieving proper 'collimation' of two optical devices for single vision. During the 19th century opera glasses became very popular. One theory is that the work carried out on stereoscopy by Wheatstone and Brewster in the 1830s and 1840s had helped to drive a public interest in using both eyes together.

Provenance: FL Estate


Dimensions: Weight (Pounds & Ounces) = 0.5 | Height(in) = 4 | Width(in) = 6 | Depth(in) = 4

Size of Artwork(in): .25 x 1.5 x 3.75" folded.


Artist Name: Mars, Graziella


Medium: Metal, silver, brass, glass.


Circa: Circa 1870

All are in good condition. Small amount of black paint loss around rims.