Traditional Chinese Folk Art of Embroidered Shoes

In the big family of footwear, Chinese embroidered shoes, which are a perfect combination of shoe culture and embroidery art, are the original handicrafts of the Chinese nation, and this kind of practical life product rooted in the national culture is called "Chinese shoes" by the world. In the ancient land of Huaxia, since the matrilineal society was transformed into a patrilineal society, the social division of labor between men and women has been formed, and women have inherited the ancient embroidered shoes skill from generation to generation, and they have been telling the aesthetic concepts, cultural traditions, ethical morals, and fashionable values of various dynasties on the shoe materials which are less than a square foot, one by one, one by one, one by one, one by one, one by one, one by one, one by one, one by one, one by one, one by one, one by one, one by one.

The embroidery of embroidered shoes follows the aesthetic style of oriental decorative aesthetics, focusing on the chapters of the upper, and the spread of the upper, and with the mouth and sole of the craft ornaments. Colorful silk threads are applied from the toe to the heel and even the sole and insole are embroidered with gorgeous patterns. Embroidered shoes embroidery theme from life, the main theme is folk culture and folk customs, the basic case of flowers, birds, grasses and insects, birds and animals, claws, flowers and fruits, mountains and rivers, scenery, theater characters and so on. Auspicious cases include Lotus, Pomegranate, Butterfly, Dragon and Phoenix, etc., which symbolize the hymn of life and a fulfilling life.

When and where did the embroidered shoes, which have been worn all over the world, first originate? It is impossible to prove this from the heirlooms that have been left behind. Widely circulated in Jinnan, Shanxi Province, "Jin shoes" legend may be able to give us some enlightenment. Two thousand six hundred years ago, during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, a group of warlords competed for supremacy. At that time, Jin, located in Shanxi, was a small country, and in 660 B.C., Duke Xian of Jin became the king of the country and did his best to expand the territory, annexing ten vassal states in one go, and began to dominate the country. In order to remind the people of the country of his achievements, he ordered all women in the palace to have their shoes embroidered with ten kinds of fruits and flowers, such as pomegranates, peach blossoms, Buddha's hands and grapes, etc. He also ordered that all common women in the country had to have these embroidered "Ten Fruit Shoes" as the wedding shoes, so that they would not forget Duke Xian of Jin's great achievements for many generations. The pattern was also ordered to be used as the wedding shoes for all common women so that the great achievements of Duke Xian of Jin would not be forgotten for generations. At that time, these embroidered shoes were called "Jin shoes". Since then, the embroidery craft of Jin has been extended to embroidered shoes, embroidered clothes and other items.