Pince-nez (/ˈpɪnsneɪ/, or as French pɛ̃sˈne) are a style of
spectacles, popular in the nineteenth century, which are
supported without earpieces, by pinching the bridge of the nose.
The name comes from the French language - pincer, to pinch, and
nez, nose. Although they were used in Europe in the 15th, 16th
and 17th centuries, modern pince-nez made their appearance in
the 1840s, reaching their peak popularity around 1880 to 1900.
By the late 1930s, they were popular mostly only with the
elderly. Varieties of pince-nez - Hard bridge - Also known as
the fingerpiece, these have a solid bridge piece which is molded
to fit the curvature of the bridge of the nose. They are
anchored onto the bridge of the nose via two small spring-loaded
clips terminating in special nose-pads made from bone or
tortoise shell on metal called plaquettes, which are tweezered
apart for placement on the face through applying pressure to two
small lever-like finger-pieces located on the front of the
bridge. Plaquettes could be either hing