Shoes

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

While the lovingly embroidered baby caps and christening gowns and adorably diminutive booties of infants are preserved in great quantity, garments for older children seldom survive in a good state or preservation. This scarce pair of 18th century child’s shoes incorporates the pointed toe and tongue found in fashionable women's styles, combined with the flat heel suitable for a child. It is not clear from the cut whether these shoes would have been worn by a boy or a girl, but the bright color is more suggestive of feminine dress.

The Costume Institute

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Costume Institute's collection of more than thirty-three thousand objects represents seven centuries of fashionable dress and accessories for men, women, and children, from the fifteenth century to the present.

Metropolitan Museum of Art