Sandals

This pair of sandals is made of a wooden sole with a blue velvet covering and blue velvet straps. Each sandal has been intricately embroidered with motifs in red, yellow and white thread. Although exact provenance is unknown this type of sandal is typical of those worn by the Shan, in the Shan States, East Burma. A date of 19th - 20th Century is appropriate. There is little documentary evidence of tribal peoples wearing shoes, however the Shan did, and they were of this type. There was a common perception amongst the westerners that the Shan were more ‘civilised’ than other tribal groups because they wore shoes/sandals (Helen Mears, Pers. Comm. 2005).

Although there is no literature on footwear in Burma, evidence of these types of sandals are found amongst the Burmese collections of the Victoria & Albert Museum, London, the James Henry Green Centre, Royal Pavilions, Brighton, and the Bankfield Museum in Halifax.