Did you think that sunglasses were always used to protect our eyes from the sun? Well if you did, you are most certainly mistaken. The first reason why they darkened glasses was because of smoke tinting, which was held in China before 1430. It was so far back in time, that of coarse their glasses were not of any prescription, and they were not used to protect your eyes from the sun. The Chinese judges had often worn sunglasses with quartz to hide the expression in their eyes while during a court case.

It was only until the actual year of 1430 that prescription sunglasses came about in China from the fair country of Italy. The sunglasses from Italy were also obviously darkened, but they were darkened for court cases as well.

The experimentation of tinting lenses came from a man named James Ayscough in the 18th Century. He as well, did not seek sunglasses as protecting your eyes from the rays of the sun, but for the correction of vision impairments.

When the 20th Century hit is when we start to see the wide range of the sunglasses popularity. This was the time period where they started to realize that sunglasses would be a great help to protect your eyes from the sun. They were first sold in the Atlantic City, New Jersey. When the year of 1930 struck was when everyone had to own a pair.

In 1960 sunglasses started to develop their actual style for fashion. There you have some new knowledge of sunglasses! What would we do without them?

Tim Gorman is a successful webmaster and publisher of Vision-Doctor.com an online website that offers discounts on contact lenses, eyeglasses, free information on LASIK eye surgery procedures and discount designer sunglasses http://www.vision-doctor.com/Discount-Sunglasses.html that you can view in the privacy of your own home.