The origin of Varilux lenses can be traced as far back as the late eighteenth century to a very famous presbyope, American statesman and inventor Benjamin Franklin. While it’s true that Ben was a great man of vision, his literal vision was not so great. In his forties, he discovered he couldn’t even read his newspaper without a magnifying glass!
Now Ben could have continued to read by magnifying glass. But his lifestyle as an inventor also required that he wear glasses to see objects at a distance. Changing spectacles to match his activities was an option . . . but not a very good one. How did Ben solve his dilemma?
After some thought, the great American cut his lenses in half, fastening distance lenses to the top portion of his frames and his reading lenses to the bottom portion. Eureka! A new invention was born: bifocals.
Some two centuries later, the eyeglass industry took his brainchild one step further. In the late 1950s, the first patent was granted for progressive “no-line” lenses in France. Hence, the first Varilux lens was born over 40 years ago.
Since then, Varilux has steadily refined and improved their lens designs. Today, Varilux lenses are the most technologically advanced progressive lenses available in the world.
The name Varilux means “variable light” to denote the progressive, or variable, power of the lens. It is the first progressive lens ever designed and continues to be the #1 prescribed progressive lens by eye care professionals worldwide.
Varilux is a product of Essilor, the largest manufacturer of ophthalmic lenses in the world.
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