Modern shoes are produced in the widest range, and are designed for a variety of conditions of use. Boots, boots, sandals, sneakers, sneakers, slippers, shoes - hundreds of thousands of new models made from traditional natural materials and synthetics appear on sale every year. Some samples are designed for daily wear, others for sports, and others for “ceremonial exits”. But in ancient times, shoes had a different attitude, they did not differ in great variety, and performed only one practical function.
History of shoes
The human foot is poorly adapted for walking, and even more so for running on rocky, rough terrain. Therefore, the need for footwear arose with the first rudiments of civilization - back in the times of the Middle and Upper Paleolithic. It is this historical period (34-40 thousand years ago) that the earliest evidence found by archaeologists is dated. The shoes themselves from the sites of Sungir and Tianyuan (Zhuzhou) have not survived to this day, but the remains of ancient settlers with modified toe phalanges were found there. Such anatomical changes could only occur as a result of long-term wearing of shoes: several dozen generations.
Directly, shoe products themselves can rarely be found at ancient archaeological sites, since rapidly decomposing organics served as materials for their manufacture: tree bark, papyrus, reeds, straw. But several successful finds were nevertheless made: in the state of Nevada, and in the state of Oregon (USA). We are talking about the Fort Rock Cave, where the woven sandals of ancient people, dated 7-8 millennium BC, were miraculously preserved. Wormwood bark and dried grass served as materials for their manufacture.
Similar finds, but dated to later centuries, were also made in the East. These are, first of all, sandals made of palm leaves, widespread in ancient Egypt, and shoes worn by the ancient Assyrians and Jews. For the rich, such shoes were tied with braided laces and equipped with hard heels with recesses in which incense was placed.
During Antiquity (from the 8th century BC to the 5th century AD), many new types of footwear appeared in Greece: low shoes, lace-up boots, soft leather stocking boots, boots without socks, and cothurni (sandals with high sole). In turn, the ancient Romans invented lace-up shoes, sandals with leather straps, rope slippers, and nailed toeless boots. The last to be equipped were Roman soldiers - legionnaires.
Middle Ages, New and Modern Times
During the Middle Ages, traditional open sandals were abolished in Europe, and their place was taken by pullens (soft leather shoes without heels and often without hard soles, with turned up toes. The more noble and rich a person was, the longer he was allowed to wear pullens "In addition, bells and bells were often hung on long shoe socks, ringing when walking. During the Renaissance, such bulky and uncomfortable shoes went out of fashion, and were gradually replaced by small shoes and shoes with ties. They were made of wool, velvet, leather, and painted in bright colors: yellow, red, blue.
In the 13th century, pointed shoes regained their popularity in Europe, but instead of bells and bells they began to be decorated with buckles, bows and laces. In the 19th century, no-frills leather boots came into use, as well as soft low shoes with fur trim. Modern shoes began to appear only at the beginning of the 20th century, when they began to be made in exact accordance with the shape of the feet. The insoles became more asymmetrical, and canvas, felt, rubber, and other cheap materials began to be used instead of leather and wool. However, this concerned (and concerns) only the middle and lower class of consumers, and representatives of the rich classes both wore and continue to wear shoes made of expensive natural materials.
In conclusion, we can say that shoes in our time (as in all other times) can be both a luxury item and an essential item. It all depends on the materials of its manufacture, the quality of tailoring and the place of production. When buying shoes on the Internet, you should pay attention to these points - as well as to the indicated size. The latter can be translated from different world standards using special online calculators or according to size tables.
