Spectacles for wear with gas mask : German Army

Metal tin containing a pair of modified eyeglasses. The round spectacles have short (40 mm) folding arms, each of which ends in an adjustable sewn-on band of grey cotton tape which can be fitted around the wearer's ears. A white paper label was originally glued inside the lid of the tin, but is now loose. It is closely printed in black type, and is headed 'Anweisung zum Aussuchen der doppelarmigen Brille.' ('Instructions for use of the double-armed spectacles.') In the bottom of the tin is a cardboard base with traces of a red felt covering. One end of the cardboard is riveted to the edge of the tin, while the other has a small black fabric tab which enables the card to be lifted. Underneath are two spare cotton tape straps with a length of grey cotton and a needle for attaching them to the arms of the spectacles.

Modified spectacles collected by Major H W Wilson, 5th Army Chemical Advisor, from a German prisoner captured at Passchendaele in 1917. With the introduction by the Germans in 1916 of the close fitting full-face 'gummimaske' gas mask, difficulties were experienced by soldiers who required spectacles to perform their duties. The arms of standard spectacles pushed the mask away from the wearer's head, and created a gap through which gas could enter. Removal of glasses before donning the respirator meant that soldiers with poor vision were unable to respond to enemy attacks. In order to overcome this problem, the German Army introduced spectacles with short arms ending in cotton or elastic tapes which fitted around the wearer's ears. The tapes enabled the respirator to be fitted snugly, although the vision problems caused by condensation on the spectacle lenses must have been considerable.