Charles Bonnet syndrome (CBS) is named after the SwissnaturalistCharles Bonnet. In 1760 he described this condition in which vivid, complex visual hallucinations (fictive visual percepts) occur in mentally healthy people. He first documented it in his 87 year old grandfather, who was nearly blind from cataracts in both eyes but perceived men, women, birds, carriages, buildings, tapestries and scaffolding patterns. Most who are affected by this are people with visual impairments due to old age, damage to the eyes or optic pathways.
External Resources
FAQ at RNIB (http://www.rnib.org.uk/xpedio/groups/public/documents/PublicWebsite/public_rnib003641.hcsp)
Fortean Times article on Charles Bonnet syndrome (http://www.forteantimes.com/articles/184_eye-spirits1.shtml)
People with CharlesBonnetSyndrome (or "Bonnet-people") are otherwise mentally sound.
CharlesBonnetSyndrome is more common in older people with a high level of education.
A Swiss philosopher named CharlesBonnet first described this condition in the 1760 when he noticed his grandfather, who was blinded by cataracts, describing birds and buildings that Bonnet could not see.
CharlesBonnet (March 13, 1720 – May 20, 1793), Swiss naturalist and philosophical writer, was born at Geneva, of a French family driven into Switzerland by the religious persecution in the 16th century.
In 1740 Bonnet communicated to the academy of sciences a paper containing a series of experiments establishing what is now termed parthenogenesis in aphides or tree-lice, which obtained for him the honour of being admitted a corresponding member of the academy.
The sensation accompanying this increased flexibility in the nerve is, according to Bonnet, the condition of memory.
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