Sunglasses have a surprisingly long history. In 12th-century China, judges wore flat pieces of smoky quartz—not to block UV rays, but to hide their expressions in court. Meanwhile, the Inuit used snow goggles made of walrus ivory with narrow slits to cut the sun’s glare off the snow—primitive, but effective eye protection.

By the 18th century, Englishman James Ayscough was tinkering with blue and green lenses to fix vision problems, not sunlight. True sunglasses didn’t take off until the 20th century, when Hollywood stars turned them into a symbol of cool. Then came Sam Foster, who made them affordable for everyone with his Foster Grant brand. 

From courtroom concealment to red-carpet glam, sunglasses have come a long way.