A Greek transcription of the Hebrew molech, meaning king, Moloch was one of the prominent pagan deities of ancient Mesopotamia. As many Israelites burned their children alive in tribute to this idol, modern thinking holds that the name in fact derives from the Punic root MLK, meaning offering or sacrifice, and suggests that Moloch refers not to the name of a god but to a particular form of ritual sacrifice.
Several Biblical accounts record the followers’ belief that by appeasing Moloch with the lives of burnt children and animals, he would renew the vitality of their king, who in turn could then reap a plentiful harvest. That, however, is not to say that it was a tidy affair – on days of sacrifice, drums and cymbals had to be played at maximum ferocity to drown out screams of burning children. 
In the 11th century, famed Talmudic commentator and rabbi Rashi stated that sacrifices to Moloch had taken place in a large brass cauldron that would have been heated to cook its victims alive. Later historians embellished this detail have the oven become a bull-shaped effigy of Moloch himself — recalling the form of the golden calf fashioned by Aaron to appease the Hebrews during Moses’ tribulation on Mount Sinai.
A brief history of eyeglasses from 1000 C.E. through the Middle Ages and to the Present. At about the turn of the first millenium, a Muslim scientist referred to in Latin as Alhazen, wrote a treatise titled The Book of Optics which became a foundational text in the study of, among several things, optics and experimental physics. He is thought to be the first person to have written about the use of a magnifying tool for improving vision through the convex shaping of glass. The use of glass or crystals to improve clarity of vision existed in various rudimentary forms from earlier points in history but was only documented and described in a more technical manner in the early part of the 11th century.
By the end of the 13th century this early evidence of corrective glass called a reading stone (often held at a distance from the eye, for example pressed directly against text to be enlarged) gave way to the first spectacles to be used on the face. These first quartz crystal lenses would be set in frames linked by a bridge to hold on the nose but did not have framing to hold the spectacles to the face so that ribbon or some other make-shift device would be devised to keep them in place.
It was not until the 1700’s that hinged side-bars were attached to the glass frames in order to secure them and it was also towards the end of this century that variations in lens appeared in the form of monocles (a single lens) and lorgnettes (two lenses held up with a handle at the side.) The bifocal, invented by Benjamin Franklin, also emerged in the late 1700’s. By this time, glasses as a necessity as well as a distinguishing mark for the wearer, were indicative of innovation and learning. Typically, glasses were more accessible to the upper classes because of expense but as they became more widely produced they also became more accessible. Nevertheless as features of style, beyond their practical purpose, glasses remain accessories and the variations one can find in eyeglasses and sunglasses today, demonstrate this clearly in the history of fashion.
|
Visit the History Store for a broad selection of historical gifts and reenactment gear. We now offer over 3,700 historically themed products ranging from authentic items, museum quality reproductions and Replica Weapons and Armor from all eras. Our new product lines include: Pirate Clothing and Pirate Costumes: Relive the Pirate age with our new line of Pirate Clothes. Great for Reenactment, film, movies, stage or a costume party. We now also carry Historical Scale Model Kits: Recreate your own historical dioramas with our new scale model kits. | |||||||||||
Tags: 1000 C.E., 11th century, 11th century glasses, 13th century glasses, 1700s eyeglasses, 1779-1780 Authentic Journal De Paris Newspaper, Alhazen, Benjamin Franklin, Book of Optics, eyeglasses as fashion, eyeglasses during the middle ages, eyglasses as necessity, Fashion History, glasses in the middle ages, historical scale model kits, history of eyeglasses, history of glasses, History Store, invention of eyeglasses, Leather Wrapped Brass Telescope, Medieval Shield Dartboard, Pirate Clothing, Pirate Costumes, scale model kits, The Presentation to Christ Coins
Embellishment in clothing and costume in many ways reached a zenith in the Europe of the 15th and 16th centuries when outfits were characterized by a longer-style garment for formal occasions and a shorter, more tailored style for daily wear. The style of the shorter garments, which in men’s clothing was comprised of the doublet (short, fitted button-down top) and the trunk hose (covering the lower body to mid-thigh), was also largely influenced by innovations in armor. The longer style garment, a holdover from Roman styles in drapery, was an elegant alternative and retained its place for ceremonial occasions.
The courtly life and the romantic notions linked to the world of knights-errant and ladies of the court created an arena for lavish details in costume, such as dagged (shaped, rounded) edges to garments, long pointed tips to sleeves that would sometimes be so long as to drag on the ground, jeweled knights’ helmets, scalloped waists, fur-trimmed gowns, lace collars, cushioned and creased sleeves, embellished sashes, densely embroidered patterns on silk as well as highly ornamented engravings on armor that echoed patterns on cloth. The extravagance was also translated to etching patterns on armor: etchings made on armor plates were sometimes so intricate as to reflect patterns recognizable from damask, or the rich patterning of exotic silks, and would also in some cases reflect flourishes in form such as slashed sleeves. It was a trend during the 15th and 16th centuries to ‘slash’ the sleeves of the doublet, which served to echo wounds in battle, and allow an under layer of cloth to protrude through the outer layer.
