1845 Ivory satin boots
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1845-1855 A pair of ivory silk satin boots.
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The right boot from the side, showing the lacing
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The sole of the right boot, not shaped for left or right
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The toe-caps of the boots
Description
The toecaps are in a slightly darker shade of satin which is only perceptible in some lights. The boots are lined with white cotton, and top edges and the sides of the openings are bound with matching silk braid, ⅛" showing.
The boots are made straight, that is without shaping for the left or right foot, and the soles are tan leather.
They are fastened by lacing on the instep side through 13 pairs of worked eyelets. The lace is a plaited length of silk thread one end of which is knotted on inside the base of the opening, leaving a long end loose, and the other end laced up in a spiral over a tongue in the satin with the silk binding; the long end is brought up behind the lacing to be tied to the other end at the top.
Contemporary illustrations
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Fashion plate in Le Follet, July 1850
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Detail from a cartoon in Punch, March 1856
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Contemporary items
1848 Striped silk taffeta dress
1850 Printed cotton dress and cape
More boots from the Hopkins Collection can be seen in Footwear, published by The School of Historical Dress and available from the Hopkins Costume Trust bookshop.