Exquisite Antique Chinese Hand Embroidered Bound Feet Shoes C1850s
Item History & Price
| Reference Number: Avaluer:24037778 | Colour: Multi-Coloured |
| Original/Reproduction: Original | Material: Cloth |
| Era: 1850s | Originating Region: China |
Exquisite AntiqueChinese Hand Embroidered Genuine Bound Feet Shoes.Circa 1850s.The pair of bound feetshoes are hand embroidered with flowers, leave and two whimsical frogs.The bottoms of the shoesare also embroidered with floral design. There are pieces of leather nailed tothe heel to protect the shoes.The shoes would havebeen sewn by the wearer. Well to do families had their daughter’s feet boundwhen there were three years old. This was a practiced started in the 1600s andended in t...he Chinese Republic Era about 1920s.The toes and the heelswould be bent and bound to almost touching. The arch of the feet would be raisedand deformed as the feet grew.The bent toes and heels would be bound and fit into the shoes while thedeformed arches would be bound on the outside of the shoes.There are strings andflaps to facilitate the wearing of these shoes.Walking wearing theseshoes would have to be excruciating and the lady would not have left herbedroom very often.When they did go out, they would be carried by her servant. Hence the hobby of sewing and embroideriesbeing an important part of a lady’s life.Feet binding was atradition for wealthy families to beautify their daughters so that they can bemarried to equally rich and educated men.It was a cruel and horriblecustom to treat women who were inferior to men.The custom started to disappearfrom the early 1900. However, girls had their feet bound when they were youngstill had bound feet when they got older.When I visited Hong Kongin the 1950s, I often saw older women hobbled on deformed feet in places suchas restaurants.These are real boundfeet shoes from the mid-1800s. You might find some for sale on the internet butmostly are reproductions.My wife has a collectionof bound feet shoes and to her this was history as her grandmother also hadbound feet.Condition is very goodconsider the age.Please refer to conditionfrom photographs.I have several photographsof a lady actually wearing bound fee shoes (not this particular pair) I would behappy to copy it on a disc for your interest when you bought the shoes.Measurement from heel totoe: 15 cmWeight:116 gramsThe battery is there forsize comparison. It has nothing to do with the item.As in most antiques, there are inevitably some imperfections that are hard to detect. Thephotographs form part of the description.'Most of my collectionis one of a kind. I bought the items because I liked it for myself. They werenever intended to be resold. Each item has a story and when possible, I handcarried in my luggage from all over the world to bring back to Australia. Someof the items have travelled a long way away and some of the items has been withme for 65 years. I am now retired and need to downsize. I will not be able tobuy a similar item again and definitely not able to sell it at the same price.If you buy an item from me it most likely is the only one I have. Not only youare buying an item you are also buying 50 years of experience. Thanks forbidding.'I only accept PayPal. Ihave a 5 business days shipping policy however if I can send earlier I will.Thank you.Check out my other items!Be sure to add me toyour favourites list! I would like to thank my customers for theirpositive and encouraging feedbacks I received over the years. They are mycredentials that money cannot buy. Your friendship and your support are verymuch appreciated and valued. Thank you.
