Horn-rimmed glasses

Horn-rimmed glasses are a type of eyeglasses. Originally made out of either horn or tortoise shell, for most of their history they have actually been constructed out of thick plastics designed to imitate those materials. They are characterized by their bold appearance on the wearer's face, in contrast to metal frames, which appear less pronounced.

Horn-rimmed glasses were one of the first styles of eyeglasses to become a popular fashion item, after comedian Harold Lloyd began wearing a round pair in his films.^[1] The glasses have enjoyed various periods of popularity throughout the 20th century, being considered especially fashionable in the 1920s–1930s and in the 1950s–1960s in particular, while ceding to rimless and wire framed glasses during the 1970s and 1990s–2000s. Michael Caine's first appearance as Harry Palmer in The Ipcress File in 1965 featured his signature look of thick horn-rimmed glasses which made him a style icon of the 1960s.^[2][3][4] The style has brought a resurgence of popularity in the late 20th (1980s–1990s) and early 21st (2010s) centuries, with an emphasis on retro fashions. This may be due in part from the influence of hipster^[5] subculture, and the television series Mad Men, which repopularized 1960s fashions in general.^[6]