Museum Monday!

c1790 Gold Silk Lady's Shoe 394.2007.12

 This week's Museum Monday number is 394...I let my daughter pick a number because I didnt get any requests off the blog this week~ (evidently, 394 is the page that Snape tells the students to turn to in one of the Harry Potter movies)..... just a single shoe, but wonderful none the less.

 I feel in 18th c shoes, any other color one finds aside from black, is special. This shoe's color is a rich deep gold. Tiny perfect hand stitching is always appreciated on early shoes

 The point of the toe shows the outer silk worn away, revealing the inner linen lining

 The dainty Louis heel was first carved from wood, then covered in silk to match the upper. The white stitching attaches the leather sole to the heel

I always like to see shoes saved that have been worn~ by the amount of the wear on this pair of shoes, they were probably an every day shoe. Many 18th c shoes survive as singles, each having been given to a loved one as a keepsake at one point in their lives~ which is such an interesting lesson in our social cultures and how things change over time...how many of my readers have saved a shoe of their own from adult life....(baby shoes not included) to pass down? I saved my wedding shoes, but other than that, I have found my shoes fall apart way before I want to be finished wearing them....let alone long enough to be saved!