Opera Glasses: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

The objective lenses are 16 mm diameter. The frame is aluminum. The barrels are covered with mother of pearl, as is the lorgnette handle and the central focusing knob. The letters “RT” appear in a diamond shape on the mid crossbar. The words “MADE IN FRANCE” appear on the inner crossbar. The case is simulated reptile skin.

If these glasses were intended for the British market, the “MADE IN FRANCE” designation indicates that they were made after Parliament passed the British Merchandise Marks Act of 1887. If they were intended for the American market, the designation indicates they were made after the McKinley Tariff went into effect on March 1, 1891. One provision of the McKinley Tariff stated that “all articles of foreign manufacture” shall “be plainly marked, stamped, branded, or labeled in legible English words, so as to indicate the country of their origin; and unless so marked, stamped, branded, or labeled, they shall not be admitted to entry.” In the words of a somewhat disingenuous Treasury Department Circular, this provision would protect Americans “from the imposition of inferior goods.”

Materials, dates and provenance

• date made: early 20th century
• Object Name: opera glasses
• Measurements: overall: 1 3/16 in; 3.048 cm
• Measurements: overall in case: 2 in x 4 1/2 in x 1 3/4 in; 5.08 cm x 11.43 cm x 4.445 cm
• place made: France
• ID Number: PH.336793
• catalog number: 336793
• accession number: 1978.2216
• Credit Line: Jane and Mary Henle
• Data Source: National Museum of American History

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of American History through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed.