Sandals

“ Most of the early nations wore sandals. The Egyptians, however, were usually barefooted, with the exception of the priests, who wore shoes of byblus, and were not permitted to wear any other. The Greek sandal consisted of a strip of thick{284} hide, tanned or untanned, for the sole, with a thinner piece, assuming some ornamental form, upon the instep, the whole connected or drawn together with straps drawn crosswise over the instep and round the ankle, or a cord or thong passing between the great toe and the first of the smaller toes. ”

“ They looked the most frantic things you can imagine, and the mere sight of them made my poor feet ache in the beautiful sandals I am wearing now; when once you have put on sandals you say good-bye and good-riddance to shoes. In a single month my feet have grown almost a tenth as large again as they were, and my friends here encourage me to believe that they will yet measure nearly the classic size, though, as you know, I am not in my first youth and can't expect them to do miracles. ”

“ Sandals made of several layers of cow-skin, prepared with the hair on and sewed together by a thong of leather, sometimes in a very neat and ornamental manner, are worn by both sexes, and are secured to the foot by a loop for the second toe, and slight strips of leather crossing the ancle are attached to the heel, and to two small lappels on the sides. ”

“ The differences of texture between the delicate white skin of the god, the leather straps of the sandals, the woollen stuff of the cloak, and the curly hair of the head, are expressed in the most masterly way. ”

“ And the sandal-makers’ trade, so long as it makes sandals, I will not rob of the appellation of art; but when it perverts men to the gestures of women, and causes them by their sandals to grow wanton and delicate, we will set it amidst the things hurtful and superfluous, and not so much as name it an art. ”

“ The sandal worn by the Romans, with its half-covering of the toes, and its straps and ribbons across the instep, and its thick sole—and one can roughly contrive a sandal with Fig. 20. Margery's Foot cardboard and ribbons at home—makes a most interesting subject to draw. Sandals, by the interweaving of their straps, draw our attention to the variety of shapes of the toes, which we too often overlook. The big toe is an important member of the foot; indeed, of the whole body. When the foot is raised it is the big toe that spreads and separates from the other toes, and helps to balance the foot. ”

“ There are several styles of these; some are partly of leather, to cover the toes on rainy days; some are merely straw sandals; while others are of wood, which are clumsy and lift the feet quite above the ground, and when worn make much noise along the streets. ”

“ This pitiable one has worn away the heels of her sandals in a vain endeavour to procure a suitable embroidery, and has turned over the contents of every stall to no material end. How have the events of the day progressed with you, my lord? ”

“ Above their heads is a goodly row of sandals, probably so placed, to attract a passing customer; the shops in the East being then, as now, entirely open and exposed to every one who passed. As the ancient Egyptian artists knew nothing of perspective, the tools of the workmen that lie around, are here represented above them: they bear, in some instances, a resemblance to those used in the present day; the central instrument, above the man who pierces the tie of the sandal, having the precise shape of the shoemaker’s awl still in use, so very unchanging are articles of utility. ”

“ The best clogs are made of paulownia wood and those of inferior quality are of cryptomeria and other common wood, while the supports, if made separately, are of oak for better qualities and beech for inferior ones.
MATTED CLOGS.
Sandals are made of matting or straw. Matted sandals are the lightest and easiest to wear of all footgear; but they are apt to cover the feet with dust in dry weather and to become sodden and muddy in wet weather or after rain. They are comfortable only on dry hard ground. ”

“ OMEN fond of display act in the same manner with regard to shoes, showing also in this matter great luxuriousness. Base, in truth, are those sandals on which golden ornaments are fastened; but they are thought worth having nails driven into the soles in winding rows. Many, too, carve on them amorous embraces, as if they would by their walk communicate to the earth harmonious movement, and impress on it the wantonness of their spirit. ”

“ The capa, or hood, is worn only in rough weather. In the glens more to the westward, low sandals of untanned leather are frequently used, the sole of the foot only being protected. Sandals have certain classic associations connected with them, and look very well in pictures, but they are fearfully uncomfortable in reality. I saw half-a-dozen peasants tramping in this species of chaussure through the wet streets of Pau amid a storm of snow and rain, and a spectacle full of more intensely rheumatic associations could no where be witnessed. ”

“ That shoes can be made of it is evident from the fact that at the present day shoes, or rather sandals, are made from its hide, and are commonly used by the Bedouins. But the very qualities and peculiarities which render it a fit material for the sandal of a half-naked Bedouin Arab, who has to walk continually over hard, hot, sandy, and rough ground, would surely make it unsuitable for the delicate shoes worn by a woman of rank who spends her time in the house, and the rest of whose clothing is of fine linen and silk, embroidered with gold and jewels. ”

“ But as the sandals cover the feet with dust in dry weather and with mud in wet, many persons prefer to walk in clogs and change them for sandals at the school or office; but as this means that they must leave at the entrance their sandals at night and their clogs in the daytime, they run the risk of losing them. ”

“ Most of the poorer natives of India go barefooted. But these devotees wore wooden sandals, not to protect the feet, but to torture them. Through these sandals from below nails were driven and sharpened above, so that every step each poor man took the weight of his body pressed upon the upturned nails, and must have produced a refinement of agony. ”

“ I found the [Pg 75] grass sandals here, in the slippery soft snow, worse than ordinary boots, as they gave no hold such as the raised heel does.
The shikarries, of course, though they slipped about, and fell too, found no real difficulty in getting on. I have addressed myself to discovering what can be the cause of such a marked difference, giving them such very superior power of adherence to a smooth, slippery, surface. The reason of this difference is, I believe, in the formation and use of the toes. The feet are remarkably short, and spread out at the toes like half a fan. ”

“ Shoes are called by the Greeks ύπυδήματα, i e., what is bound, or tied, because they were formerly bound or tied with strings above, as is still the custom with many. That the Apostles after Christ’s Ascension made use of sandals, appears from Acts xii., where the Angel says to Peter, Bind on thy sandles. Of such a kind is S. Andrew’s sandal in the Cathedral of Treves, which has been shown me by the Reverend, the Provost. ”

“ If a second is worn, as by women of some consideration, it is commonly flung over the head and shoulders. Their sandals are the same as those of men, of tanned leather, or of the undressed hide, according to their circumstances. The hair is plaited in five close tresses,—one like a crest along the crown, and two at each side, and thickly bedaubed with indigo. ”

“ The collar and sleeve ends of the clothes may be ornamented with silk, and an obi (belt) of silk or silk crêpe may be worn, but not in public.
5. Hair ornaments should consist of norihiki and motoi, and nothing more.
6. Footwear should be narazōri (sandals made at Nara) not setta (sandals of iron and leather) . Women are to wear bamboo-thonged sandals ordinarily, but at occasions of ceremony sandals with cotton thongs; men should wear only bamboo-thonged sandals on all occasions. ”

“ The fenestrated sandals were abandoned about the fourteenth century in favour of shoes, in shape very much resembling the modern ankle-shoe. It would have been inconsistent, however, with the spirit of the fourteenth century to have abandoned the decorative effect produced by the open-work, and neglected to find some substitute. This substitute was found in lavish embroidery and in ornamentation with jewels and spangles of gold. The sandals, in fact, became as elaborate as did the rest of the ecclesiastical vestments. ”

“ The sandal was originally a part of the woman's dress; ancient authors represent them as worn only by women. In [207] , the disciples are commanded to take no shoes, ὑποδηματα, which word is nearly of the same import with σανδαλια, sandals; but, as our Lord intimates to them that they should be free from all useless incumbrances, that they might fulfill his orders with the utmost diligence and despatch, so we may suppose that the sandal was a lighter kind of wear than the shoe: and indeed the word sandal, which is mere Chaldee, סנדל might be properly translated a light shoe ”

“ On the feet, when dressed, are worn sandals of wood or cowhide, covered with cloth, and held on by straps, one of which passes over the instep, the other over the great toe. On entering a house, these are always left at the door. ”

“ Men and women often wear sandals of hide or plaited bast. They are fond of ornament, and decorate the arms, neck and legs with beads, iron or copper rings, teeth, hoofs, horns and shells, while they stick feathers or hares’ tails in the hair. ”

“ Yucca fiber sandals are worn throughout the year but in the winter grass and juniper bark are sometimes bound to the foot by the sandal lacings and extra warmth is provided. Short leggings, made from buckskin or woven of human hair, are often worn by the men when they leave the cave.
As winter draws near and the threat of cold weather comes close the people check their clothing needs carefully. Each man, woman and child will need certain things so the weaving and sewing continue until everyone is well supplied. ”

“ Gradually they took more and more to sandals, and there are pictures of great men going along bare-foot, but followed by a servant carrying their sandals—perhaps to put on when they came to rough ground. ”

“ Barefoot sandals or Japanese sandals will do for the feet, if antique sandals cannot be made. In many cases it is preferable that the actors go barefoot.
[Pg 8]
For bracelets, crowns, scepters, fans, buy sheet copper or brass, tin shears, and cut as desired. These will last forever.
For soldier costumes, make brilliant, short tunics. Belt these in with a twelve-inch strip of brown buckram, which, in turn, is tied on with a bright cord. Use cone-shaped caps.
Egyptian costumes may always be indicated by a belt with a broad flap in the center, reaching from waist to hem. ”

“ Save for their sandals and the skins of the panther and ocelot and jaguar, the Mexican leopard, which they wore clasped at the left shoulder by a golden, jeweled clasp, and which fell diagonally down across the body to the right knee, leaving the arms and shoulders and the greater part of the body bare and the left leg exposed to the hip, the women were as naked as the men who wore sandals [Pg 373] and loin-skins only. Heavy clasps and bracelets and girdles of gold and silver, set with pearls and opals, and turquoise and topaz, and emeralds and sapphires, adorned their arms and waists. ”

“ It is not probable that any heavy materials were ever made up by women at home. Sandals also were worn, and made by girls for their own wear from bits of morocco and kid.
In the early years of the century the thin, silk hose and low slippers of the French fashions proved almost unendurable in our northern winters. One wearer of the time writes, “Many a time have I walked Broadway when the pavement sent almost a death chill to my heart.” The Indians then furnished an article of dress which must have been grateful indeed, pretty moccasins edged with fur, to be worn over the thin slippers. ”

“ At night, and often during the day, they bound sandals under their feet, the thongs of which are not unfrequently cut out of the same piece, and being drawn between the great and second toes, surround the feet like a skate. ”

“ Shoes of this description were called sandals, and were worn by the ancient Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans.
It has been discovered, by means of paintings on the walls of Thebes, that shoemaking formed a distinct and quite lucrative trade away back in the reign of Thothmes III., some fifteen hundred years before Christ, so that followers of the awl and last can truthfully boast of the great antiquity of their profession. ”

“ When the ceremony takes place in the garden, matting must be spread all the way to the place, so that sandals need not be worn. The reason for this is that some men in that position suffer from a rush of blood to the head, from nervousness, so their sandals might slip off their feet without their being aware of their loss ”

“ Both men and women of condition wear sandals, shoes, or slippers in the house; and in the European districts, the Regent and other chiefs, when in attendance on the public officers, on journeys or otherwise, usually superadd to the native dress tight cloth or nankeen pantaloons, with boots and spurs, according to the European fashion. ”

“ In some parts of the country, where the ground is hard and stony, the natives plait for themselves sandals or slippers, which very much resemble those which are used by the Japanese. They consist of the ever-useful phormium fibres, which are twisted into cords, and then plaited firmly into the shape of a shoe sole. ”

“ Such vegetable sandals were, however, occasionally decorated with ornaments to a considerable extent, and they then became expensive. The making of them in all their variety, was the business of a class of men called Baxearii; and these with the Solearii (or makers of the sim{22}plest kind of sandal worn, consisting of a sole with little more to fasten it to the foot than a strap across the instep) constituted a corporation or college of Rome.
The solea were generally worn by the higher classes only, for lightness and convenience, in the house; the shoes (calceus) being worn out of doors. ”