The Evolution of Shoes

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Dr. Seuss talks about, “oh how many feet you meet” in his book Foot Book. With so many feet and uses for them, humans developed ways to protect their feet with the idea of shoes. When people first started wearing shoes, they were worn for more practical uses than they are today. One man, Joshua Mueller, holds the record for the most pairs of converse shoes owned at 1,546 pairs (“Largest Collection of Converse Shoes”); now that is something to talk about. The world of shoes is ever changing, not only in style, but in many other ways.

Shoes began with simple designs and materials, because they were generally worn for protection by those who were able to create or afford them. “The simplest way to protect feet was to grab what was handy- bark, large leaves and grass- and tie them under the foot with vines” (“The History of Shoes”). Looking further into the future, the Romans developed more styles of sandals like the military sandal called the caliga. This open-toed shoes consisted of “a lattice- patterned upper, front lacing and a heavily nailed sole.” Britain saw what the Romans were wearing and based their styles off of this as well, although they went with a closed-toe design because of their colder weather patterns (“The History of Shoes”). Footwear from this time period is difficult to locate, so most of the information comes from looking at paintings, sculptures, and other artifacts that were left behind by the people of that time period (Krick). Even in the early years of civilization, shoes changed as new ideas and materials were developed.

In the medieval times, footwear started to become more of an indication of social status. Those who were able to wear shoes that were more impractical meant they did not have a laborio...

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... Database of Various Sports Shoes, Field Types."

Penn State. October 11, 2013.Web. 11 Nov. 2013

"The History of Shoes." Northampton Borough Council Homepage. Web. 09 Nov. 2013.

"How It's Made." Science Channel. Web. 12 Nov. 2013.

Krick, Jessa. "Shoes in The Costume Institute". In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New

York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.

"Largest Collection of Converse Shoes." Largest Collection of Converse Shoes. Web. 06

Nov. 2013.

"Made in Italy." Gucci. Web. 12 Nov. 2013.

"The Official International Shoe Size Conversion Chart." The Official International Shoe

Size Conversion Chart. Web. 12 Nov. 2013.

"One Company | Ebay Inc." One Company | Ebay Inc. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Nov. 2013.

"Pointe Shoe Facts." Home Page.Web. Nov. 11 2013.

"TOMS One for One." TOMS One for One Shoes and Eyewear. Web. 12 Nov. 2013.

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