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Record details

Latchet tie shoes

This style of shoe called a latchet tie was a popular choice for women in the seventeenth century.

The blue velvet uppers have been embroidered with padded floral motifs in silver gilt thread. The narrow strip of white leather between the upper and sole is called a rand and made it easier for the shoemaker to sew the delicate textile upper to the hard leather sole. The heel is carved wood covered with leather.

In the Western world heels with a distinct heel arch appeared on shoes from the late 1590s onwards. The first written reference was in the wardrobe lists of Queen Elizabeth I, which records in 1595 'a payre of spanyshe leather shoes with highe heels and arches.'

These shoes were reputedly worn by Lady Mary Stanhope in about 1660.

Lady Mary Stanhope's shoes are on display in the History of Shoe Fashions case in the shoe gallery.