Opera Glasses

Opera glasses are designed to help a person attending a stage production see the actors and props better. Theatre-goers first used opera glasses in the UK in 1833. Soon theatres were advertising that they had opera glasses for rent for a penny. Those cheaply made opera glasses might have been fine for the common folk. If you were of the aristocracy or any other person from the wealthy upper class, you had to have your own opera glasses, and they had to be trimmed with gold or made from mother of pearl. Opera glasses from those elegant old times are now much in demand by collectors. People will pay a lot of money for elegant 19th century antique ivory opera glasses. Binoculars like Jaccard opera glasses draw considerable attention at auctions.

Antique opera glasses come in a variety of styles. Some, for example, are folding opera glasses, easy to close up and pop into a lady’s handbag or a gentleman’s pocket. Others were part of the night-at-the-opera costume, like the lorgnette opera glasses decorated with mother-of-pearl and with a telescoping handle, so the user could rest his or her hand on the arm rest while still holding the glasses up to the eyes.

A pair of antique Jaccard opera glasses might be found for sale online. But another place to look for Jaccard is The King Jewelry Co. Brass opera glasses, mother-of-pearl opera glasses, ivory opera glasses; all of the visual aids from those old days can be found through this well-known jewelry store chain. If you can’t find a Jaccard at King Jewelry Co., the opera glasses are probably not available.

People also collect the opera glasses that once belonged to people who were the celebrities of their time. You won’t likely get your hands on the opera glasses used by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, but you may get something like the Oskar (Ed) Messter Berlin opera glasses. Messter was a pioneer German film maker who, coincidentally enough, was the son of a man who worked with optics.

People who go the live stage productions today use opera glasses manufactured by companies like London Opera Glasses, who make the glasses that are in the coin-operated holders on the backs of seats in theatres. They are practical, but hardly elegant. Of course, those old fashioned antique opera glasses would be about as useful as a set of toy Crystar opera glasses. The modern theatre goer who wants his or her own pair, might want something made by Milana. Milana & opera glasses go together. Try their sleek little seven ounce model, and you will look good at the opera.