A Print of George Mayerle’s International Eye Test Chart from 1907

George Mayerle’s international eye test chart was produced around 1907. It offered eye tests for global customers. Mayerle was a German-born optometrist working in San Francisco when he made the chart. No matter what language you spoke in the city, you could understand the chart and your medic could test your eyesight. The National Library of Medicine has more:

George Mayerle’s eye test chart … “combined four subjective tests done during an eye examination. Running through the middle of the chart, the seven vertical panels test for acuity of vision with characters in the Roman alphabet (for English, German, and other European readers) and also in Japanese, Chinese, Russian, and Hebrew. A panel in the center replaces the alphabetic characters with symbols for children and adults who were illiterate or who could not read any of the other writing systems offered. Directly above the center panel is a version of the radiant dial that tests for astigmatism. On either side of that are lines that test the muscular strength of the eyes. Finally, across the bottom, boxes test for color vision, a feature intended especially (according to one advertisement) for those working on railroads and steamboats.”

You can buy a lovely art print of George Mayerle’s eye test chart at the Flashbak art prints Shop.