A pair of ladies floral emboirdered shoes. Leather sole, sharp pointed tongue, decorative embroidery, which is different on each shoe. Low fabric covered wooden heel, all over embroidery. With flowers and leaves. Shoes are listed as dancing shoes and date to around the 1730s. The sole for each of these shoes and pattens is identically shaped. They are indoor shoes and until the 1790s, very little leather was used for women’s footwear, except boots for outdoors. The curved heel and pointed up-turned toe of this shoe are typical of women’s shoes of the 1730s. The latchets would have been fastened with buckles. Buckles were regarded as separate accessories and transferred from one pair of shoes to another. Such a delicate shoe was intended for indoor wear only. When travelling, riding or walking outdoors, women wore leather boots. Dancing offered an excellent opportunity to show off elegant shoes normally hidden under dresses and petticoats.
Comments