Modern swim goggles come in a myriad of styles, colors and designs, and can accommodate everyone from the beginning swimmer to the Olympic Gold Medalist. Swim goggles can even have prescription lenses. The earliest swim goggles date back to the fourteenth century, and their development through the years includes some interesting highlights.
Origins
Fourteenth-century Persian pearl divers wore an advanced version of early goggles with fat, round lenses made of polished tortoise shell layers, according to the International Swimming Hall of Fame, or ISHOF. Sixteenth-century Polynesian skin divers wore goggles without lenses, fashioned from wood or bamboo. The frames trapped air around the eye when the divers went under, creating an air bubble through which they could see.
Disappearance
Although a sixteenth-century illustration of Venetian divers clearly depicts coral divers wearing fat, round goggles, the devices soon disappeared altogether. One theory, according to ISHOF, purports that commercial divers were usually slaves who didn't wear goggles.
English Channel Fame
Thomas Burgess is credited with doing the first competitive swim with goggles in 1911. He was the second person to swim the English Channel, and used motorcycle-type goggles. They did not seal out water, but did protect his eyes from sea and spray as he swam the breaststroke with his head above the surface. The first woman to swim the Channel, Gertrude Ederle, also opted for motorcycle-type goggles. Since her stroke choice was the crawl, which submerges the face in water, her sister added a paraffin seal to make the goggles watertight.
Advancements
Goggles developed quickly through the 1930s thanks to the popularity of skin and scuba diving. Goggles enjoyed a burst of popularity for the next 20 years, with "Popular Science" magazine even printing plans for the Polynesian wood goggles. It wasn't until 1968, however, that goggles made it to the pool, and their debut did not cause a splash. In fact, it was the opposite. Goggles came in one size to fit everyone and were not the most comfortable or effective, ISHOF says.
Highlights
Goggles made the mainstream when David Wilke donned a pair in the 1970 Commonwealth Games. This opened the door for further development, acceptance and the multi-million dollar business goggles have become today. Other goggle history highlights include kicking off the career of oceanographer Jacques Cousteau, according to Encyclopedia.com. Cousteau first became interested in sea life when he received a pair of goggles in 1936 and was amazed with what he could see.
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