MusEYEum News

September 2008: Looking Beyond the Square Mile

When optometrist Lawrence Hebditch opened his practice in Doncaster in the 1930s he was still very proud to be a Freeman of the City of London and so he produced a painted mirror emblazoned with a somewhat fanciful version of the City Arms to display to the good folk of South Yorkshire visiting his practice. That mirror, which was in turn donated to the BOA Museum 13 years ago, has now found itself as the opening item of a new temporary exhibition at the Guildhall Art Gallery. The City’s Heritage – Beyond the Square Mile has been organised by the City of London Guide Lecturers Association to mark their 25th anniversary and tells the story of a myriad of objects, documents and architectural features that were once located in the City of London but came to reside in places far away. Robin Michaelson, a City Guide, who organised the exhibition said ‘I was delighted to discover this substantial object which we’ve placed in the first display case because, in effect, it serves as a fitting emblem for the whole show’. The College has also lent a pair of silver spectacles to the exhibition that are marked with the name of Robert Bate whose optician’s shop stood on the Poultry, a famous old City street, from 1807.

The exhibition, on the art gallery’s balcony, is open until 9 November 2008. Check the Guildhall Art Gallery website for opening times.

September 2008: The MicroMuseum of Optography

The BOA Museum has opened its first ever full-scale temporary exhibition which is also the first time it has collaborated with a contemporary artist and the first of its displays to incorporate sound and video. Follow the link to learn more about Derek Ogbourne's The MicroMuseum of Optography.

The exhibition is divided between the museum's Sutcliffe Room and Giles Room and is open until 31 March 2009. Admission free (but remember that, as with all visits to the BOA Museum, you still need to make an apointment).

September 2008: Open House and the Smallest Museum in the World?

The College of Optometrists pushed wide its doors for its annual public open day on Sunday, September 21st between 1pm and 5pm.

Staff and volunteers were receiving visitors to the museum and the formal meeting rooms to show them the Georgian building and the historic collections as well as explaining what optometrists do and promoting the importance of regular eye examinations. Entry was free and there was no need to book. There were two innovations this year: Firstly there was a chance to view selected items from the rare books collection interpreted ably by our Honorary Fellow Richard Keeler, whilst, downstairs, professional artist Derek Ogbourne was presenting his mini installation the Micro Museum of Optography – arguably the world’s smallest museum built inside the confines of a drawer. Learn more about optography here. The afternoon concluded with a public reading from Derek's new book, The Encyclopedia of Optography. The readers were Susana Medina and Olly Beck.

As in previous years the event formed part of London’s annual Open House weekend. Open House, a celebration of the capital’s new and historic buildings is now in its sixteenth year and 699 buildings from across London took part this year. Londoners and visitors to London alike got the chance to peer inside, but the College is perhaps the only one where the contents of the building were looking back at them! Sights to see included the dramatically-shaped Council Room with its curving table to match, the spectacular Print Room with its wall of optical imagery and the eye-related exhibits of the British Optical Association Museum that feature in various parts of the building. Organiser Neil Handley explained that ‘Our Open Day gives the public the opportunity to learn about optometry whilst enjoying a visit to an exquisite Georgian building. For optometrists this is a chance to see inside their professional headquarters, which are not normally open at weekends. We hope some of our members and fellows will avail themselves of this opportunity’.

So, if you didn't join the 219 people who visited this September, you may wish to pencil in the same weekend next year, or if you can't wait until then remember that we are open by appointment on week days between 9.30am and 5.00pm.

August 2008: 400 Years of the Telescope

This year marks the 400th anniversary of the discovery of the telescope by a German-born spectacle maker in the Netherlands. Historians often get his name wrong but you can check your facts and learn more in our new MusEYEum web feature 400 Years of the Telescope which contains some of the very latest research. Remember other historical websites may perpetuate errors and myths but the content of the MusEYEum is peer-reviewed by experts specialising in the field before publication.

May 2008: Have a ripping time at this exhibition

The museum has lent an item to an exhibition about Jack the Ripper and the East End of London. For more details see our exhibition notices page.

April 2008: We're on the map

Not sure how to find us? Our museum is now marked on special map produced by London Underground and available free to pick up from Charing Cross and Embankment Underground stations. Remember when seeking us out that the brass plaque on the building reads 'College of Optometrists' and that the museum itself is not externally sign-posted.

April 2008: A Look Refreshed

Careers Officers please note: We have given our popular multimedia presentation 'A Look at Optometrists' a make-over. Literally tens of thousands of young people have accessed this interactive fun website describing what optometrists are, what they do and how to set about training to become one. We're delighted that our colleagues in the Vision Sciences Department at Aston University are using a scaled-down version of this presentation in outreach work to schools. It's also another way of showcasing our museum collections including the 'X-Ray Gogs' shown here. ...probably not the sort of thing a qualified optometrist would prescribe!

The changes include more pictures, more sounds (turn that volume up to annoy your teachers!) and the chance to take a break from completing the four puzzles part way through, go away, have a cup of tea, have a sleep, come back another day entirely and resume where you left off.

The fifth of our regular prize draws took place on 30th April and you can discover the winner's name at http://www.college-optometrists.org/look Your next chance to win will be at the end of October 2008 so come on kids, get looking now!

July 2007: Four New Web Slide Shows

The museum now has a dedicated section on the ever-expanding Antique Spectacles and Other Vision Aids website hosted in the United States. Visit this to see slide shows of spectacles (both antique and 'modern'), scissor spectacles and optical fans in our collection.

June 2007: New URL for Museum Catalogue

We have moved our online catalogue to a new server. You can now access it at the simple address of www.museyeum.org

Antiques enthusiasts are 25 years old

The Ophthalmic Antiques International Collectors' Club celebrated its 25th anniversary with a major conference in London during May 2007. The College of Optometrists was the joint host. On Friday 11 May delegates visited the Royal College of Ophthalmologists, the Science Museum's Reserve Store at Blythe House and were treated to a guided tour of the Science Museum galleries by Neil Handley. An evening reception was held at the Benjamin Franklin House. On Saturday 12 May a party of 30 delegates from the UK, USA, Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands enjoyed a hands-on session with selected objects at the British Optical Association Museum here at the College of Optometrists. A number of boxes normally kept in storage had been brought out for the occasion; without doubt it was the largest proportion of the collection ever to be placed on view and our thanks go in particular to Gordon Turner FCOptom for helping to achieve this. The party then travelled by boat to Greenwich for a hands-on session in the store at the Royal Observatory, returning to Central London for the conference dinner. Our photo shows the turnout at the Annual General Meeting held on the Sunday at the Strand Palace Hotel. As well as the customary auction there were three illustrated lectures on optical history websites, fine eyebaths and opera glasses. At the front are Neil Handley, BOA Museum Curator, Frank Barraclough, OAICC Chairman and Gordon Turner.

Discover more about the Ophthalmic Antiques International Collectors' Club and its historic links with the College.

BOA Paintings Go International!

The BOA collection of paintings has become the subject of a major article in the latest Spring edition of the Points de Vue, the bi-annual international review of ophthalmic optics, published by ophthalmic lens giant Essilor. Professor Colin Fowler's article has been translated into French, German and Spanish and twelve of our paintings have been reproduced in full colour including the portrait of A Spanish Gentleman which adorns the front cover. We have already provided Meeting Room Tours to French visitors who heard about our distinguished art collection through this journal. These personally conducted tours cost just £5 per person whether or not you are in a group (and College of Optometrists members or Fellows go free). Would you like to be next?

Reference: Fowler, C., 2007, 'Art and Vision: The Paintings of the British Optical Association Museum', Points de Vue (56) p38-46.

We have a few extra copies of this magazine that we would be willing to sell to anyone who is interested, whilst stocks last. Please enquire.

Past Presidents acknowleged (updated May 2008)

The museum has commissioned a new wooden 'Past Presidents' board to record the names of those who have served as President of the College of Optometrists since 1980. Humphrey Yorke is the only name to appear both on this board and one of the two earlier boards since he was also the last ever President of the British Optical Association. The BOA boards feature in our museum display outside the Sutcliffe Room. You can see the brand new board with its freshly gilded lettering on one of our Meeting Room Tours.

***Update***With the conclusion of Kevin Lewis' term of office we've added the terminal date 2008 to the board. This is one object that won't be frozen in time but will be updated regularly!

Online objects catalogue launched

Our complete accessioned collection is now available to research and enjoy. The service went live on 1 June 2006 and data is transferred from our Collections Management System on a regular basis. The catalogue is the result of nearly eight years' labour though it should be regarded as an ongoing project since research into our items is always revealing new information and challenging older ideas. The BOA Museum was one of the first museums in the United Kingdom to have a digital image of every single item in the collection (1999) and so links to thumbnail images will be added to this catalogue in due course.

We hope that our members and the general public alike will enjoy seeing what objects we've got. You may be surprised at the variety and depth of the collections we hold in trust for future generations. The service will, of course, be an invaluable tool for researchers who will be able to plan what objects they want to request for inspection from our reserve store. It should enable them to identify new leads and topics to study.

Enter the online objects catalogue.

Jet-setting Specs (updated May 2008)

Our rare pair of Franklin-type split bifocal spectacles, probably dating from around 1800, have returned from their trip around America and France as part of the Franklin Tercentenary exhibition 'In Search of A Better World' toured five US cities, starting in Philadelphia, before transferring to Paris in late 2007. We're pleased to report that they returned safely in April 2008 and are now back on display in our own museum. Genuine Franklin-type split bifocal spectacles are rare. As of 2005 there were thought to be probably only 8 confirmed examples in the world dating from the period 1790-1820, of which this is one. Because of the sliding sides we cannot date it with certainty any earlier than 1806 but there is reason to believe that this type of side may have been available circa 1800.

Meanwhile it's official. Ben did NOT invent bifocals. The Museum Curator presided over an interactive referendum held at The Royal Society on 2 May 2006. The question was 'Did Benjamin Franklin Invent Bifocals?' and the electoral college was drawn from five local primary schools (including the American School in London). Pupils were divided into two parties, the 'Eyes' and the 'Nose' and after a rigorous examination of the pictorial and documentary evidence the 'Nose' party won a vote of acclamation. In the history of science as much as in the practice of modern science it is important to continually question common assumptions, to assess the available evidence, to view it critically and not to draw conclusions that the evidence cannot support, no matter how attractive a certain standpoint may seem.