Chopines

Unknown

1550–1650 · silk, metal · Costume Institute

The chopine was a tall clog worn in primarily in Venice to elevate the lady above both the dirt and the hoi polloi of the street. While relatively few shoes survive from the period of the 15th to 17th century, chopines are inordinately represented in museum collections as they were saved most probably due to their outlandish peculiarity. This exemplar illustrates all the classical characteristics of this specialized form: red or green velvet covering, lobed platform sole trimmed in gold lace with hobnails, gold braid edging, shirred ribbon trim on the vamp, and beard-like tassel below the open toe.

Artist

Unknown

Date

1550–1650

Medium

silk, metal

Culture

Italian

Department

Costume Institute

Credit line

Brooklyn Museum Costume Collection at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of the Brooklyn Museum, 2009; Gift of Herman Delman, 1955