Dollond & Aitchison
John Dollond
The son of a Huguenot refugee silk weaver, John Dollond initially followed his father’s trade, but became fascinated by optics along with his son, Peter. In the early 1750s, both father and son quit the silk business, opening an optical instruments shop on Vine Street – widely recognised as the first opticians in Britain. In 1758, the Dollonds were granted a patent for the invention of the achromatic lens and, three years later, they were appointed as official optician to King George III. John died later that year, but Peter continued to grow the business and invent new products, including the world’s first bifocal lens.
The Dollonds popularised the wearing of spectacles and also introduced other products, such as spy-glasses at the theatre and opera. In 1927, Dollond & Co merged with Aitchison & Co to form Dollond & Aitchison, opening hundreds of branches on high streets across the UK. Dollond & Aitchison merged with Boots Opticians in 2009.
Object: Dollond spyglass, c.1750-60. Loaned by the College of Optometrists, British Optical Association Museum
