Pair of Chinese Lotus Shoes
pair of embroidered cloth "Lotus" shoes with applied decoration, silk and cotton, late 19th century. This example shows fine delicate and even stitching, with a higher back to disguise the heel as part of the ankle. Much of the shoe would have been hidden behind the hem of the wearer’s garments, therefore the delicate embroidery on the toe was positioned on the part of the shoe intended to be seen. Traditional footwear worn by women in China with bound feet, Lotus shoes are highly collectible and often found in museums. The origin of foot binding is not known but early examples have been found in 12th century tombs and it is thought that the practice began as early as the 11th century. For much of its history foot binding was practiced only by the elite upper class Han Chinese women, and it was only in the 19th century that the practice became widespread in the Chinese population and an essential element in women’s lives. At this time the process was banned, although it was not fully stopped until the Communists took power in 1949. It is still officially banned to this day.
The name lotus shoe is in fact an English term, in China the shoes were called arch shoes, embroidered slippers and gilded lilies. The shoes themselves often only covered a portion of a woman’s bound foot, as much of the foot would be wrapped in bandages or bamboo supports and hidden to resemble the ankle. The hemline of the garments was designed to hide all but the smallest portion of the foot to give the illusion of the Golden Lotus. The shape was said to resemble a lotus bud with a wide and rounded base narrowing to a pointed tip, hence the name of lily feet or lotus feet. The Golden
Size: 7 h in
D20965
