Collection: British Optical Association Museum

Collection-level records:

• Collection overview (Cornucopia)

  Begun in 1901 to illustrate past and present material culture of ophthalmic opticians (optometrists). Over eleven thousand outstanding items of ophthalmic and optical interest. Includes over 2000 pairs of spectacles, from 17th c. through to 21st c. as well as historic examples of other optical devices and aids to vision including scissor spectacles, folding eyeglasses, pince-nez, lorgnettes, magnifiers, quizzing glasses and monocles. The Museum also includes a collection of over 500 antique prints as well as oil paintings, sculptures and decorative art items on optical themes. It preserves a wide range of ophthalmic optometric instruments, visual test charts, orthoptic and hygienic devices. It is considered to be the national specialist collection for contact lenses and contact lens accessories. It also has specialist collections relating to photography, pharmacy and ocular prosthetics. Collections include: Boots Opticians Ltd Collection American Optical Collection Frank Dickinson Collection – Contact lenses and accessories associated with this pioneer contact lens practitioner. Keith Clifford Hall Collection – Contact lenses and accessories. Dollond and Aitchison Loan Collection Telescopes, binoculars, opera glasses Contact Lens Collection – Considered by many to be the national collection of contact lenses and contact lens accessories including hard and soft lenses, fitting sets, cleaning and soaking solutions, insertion devices, storage cases, promotional items and advertising ephemera.

  Ancient Egyptian Collection

  The museum holds 4 ancient Egyptian objects. Object classes represented in the collection include: amulets; coffins (eye inlays only).

  Subjects

  Ancient civilizations; Antiquities; Antiquity; Egyptology

  Portraits Collection

  This heading is included due to the museum’s involvement in the SSN Understanding British Portraiture mapping exercise. It does not denote a distinct collection. Portraits are to be found across the museum’s collections of paintings, prints, photographs and reproduction images. Many of the sitters are wearing or holding spectacles or other vision aids, but there are also portraits of figures important in the field of optics or ophthalmic medicine. The collection includes what has been described as the best preserved version of the Joshua Reynold’s Self-Portrait (actually a copy, probably by a pupil). Portraits featuring spectacles and eyewear; British Optical Association Museum.

  Subjects

  Optics; Medical profession; Medical physics; Eye; Famous people; History of medicine; Scientific equipment

  Source: Cornucopia

  Date: Not known, but before 2015

  Licence: CC BY-NC