Shoes

Unknown

1725–50 · leather · Costume Institute

Men’s shoes survive in lesser number than women's, and utilitarian clothing is particularly scarce, as it was usually worn out and thrown away. That scarcity makes this pair of men’s latchet-tie shoes of particular interest. The general cut, fold-over tongue, and substantial heel are retained from fashionable shoes of a somewhat earlier date, while the heavy, pegged soles and heel irons indicate that the primary intent of these shoes was not for up-to-date style but for their capacity to stand up to the rigors of work in the pre-industrial society.

Artist

Unknown

Date

1725–50

Medium

leather

Culture

probably European

Department

Costume Institute

Credit line

Brooklyn Museum Costume Collection at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of the Brooklyn Museum, 2009; Gift of Mrs. E. C. Ward, 1924