Shoes History

There is much evidence that a foot covering was one of the first things made by your primitive ancestors. Necessity compelled them to invent some method of protecting their feet from the jagged rocks, burning sands, and rugged terrain over which they ranged in pursuit of food and shelter. The history of human development shows that the importance of protecting the foot was early recognized. Records of the Egyptians, the Chinese and other early civilizations all contain references to shoes. The shoe is repeatedly mentioned in the Bible and the Hebrews used it in several instances with a legal significance, notably in binding a bargain.

If one can deduce that basic shoe shapes have evolved only so much, it is necessary to discover why this has happened. It is surely not due to a lack of imagination – the colours and materials of shoes today demonstrate that. Looking at shoes from different parts of the world, one can see undeniable similarities. In fact, a survey from the early 1990s reported that 88 percent of American women wear shoes that are too small!

Shoes of one sort or another are rich in legend and figure conspicuously in the folklore of different races. The shoe, even up to the present time, continues to figure in those stories, which have come down to us. The stories of the wonderful Seven League Boots, Mercury's Winged Sandals, Puss in Boots, Cinderella, and others, all existed in some ancient and often nearly forgotten tongue, but are still well known to all children. The custom of throwing the shoe after the newly wedded couple is but one of the many instances in which the shoe, when used according to formula, was supposed to bring luck.

As one examines footwear history, both in the West and in other parts of the world, the similarities are apparent. Though the shoemakers of the past never would have thought to pair a sandal with a platform sole, our shoe fashions of today are, for the most part, modernised adaptations of past styles.

The History of Shoes: Superstition

Lucky Omens

Abstract notions of divinity were of little importance to primitive people whose immediate tendency was to endow any idea or phenomenon with personality, and that personality with qualities and defects, with moods and habits. The believers thought worn shoes retained the spirit and character of their owners and many fairy tales were based on this premise. This was a common belief in the Middle Ages and even as late as the nineteenth century, old shoes were used a good luck tokens left in the roofs of old houses to fend off evil spirits. Some shoes were buried with the corps and others found in bogs and marshes. On the whole feet and shoes were associated with good luck and an old shoe was considered a good luck charm. Hence the reason, even today, many superstitious people wear old shoes on Friday 13th for good luck. An age old custom was to burn old shoes for the sake of good luck. In modern Greece this was done to prevent naughty goblins from invading the home during Christmas time. On some of the sculptured stones around the world are human footprints surrounded by meandering and serpentine lines. These "luck lines" were thought to secure magical protection for individuals setting out on a journey. Primitive people rarely entered upon new endeavours without performing luck ceremonies. The term "putting your foot in it" was thought to have originated from this custom. Another belief was by harming the footprint you were injuring the owner. There are many customs around the world where the footprint was guarded to protect the owner. The Zuni Indian women would keep the earth of their husbands foot print to keep him safe from harm as well as dampen his sexual ardour whilst away from his spouse. Yet another explanation is the magical cermonies performed around the footprints prevented their hero owners from wandering as ghosts. The primitive belief was footprints snared within luck lines meant ghosts would not trouble the living. In caves from the Palaeolithic period a naked foot print was found near drawings of trout and wounded bison, this was thought to have been a superstitious belief which aided the hunter to achieve his objective. The term "may luck follow your footsteps" originated in the Highlands of Scotland where young boys went bird nesting. Queen Victoria was thought to have a lucky foot by her highland subjects and brought luck to Scotland. The original job of a footman was to prevent anyone entering the room with their left foot over the treshold.