1900 Chinese Woman’s Slippers for Bound Feet
- Description
- Mrs. Lee had bound feet her entire life. Her daughter, Grace Mok, noted in an oral history that her limited mobility and difficulty in walking required her to be accompanied wherever she went. Though these are not Ng Shee Lee’s shoes, they are similar to those she wore.
- Foot binding in China may have originated as early as 900 AD. Though outlawed by the conquering Manchus in the 17th century, the Han Chinese retained the social practice into the 20th century.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Object Name
- woman's shoe for bound feet
- Object Type
- Shoes
- date made
- 1900
- maker
- unknown
- Physical Description
- silk (overall material)
- leather (overall material)
- Measurements
- overall: 4 in x 4 in; 10.16 cm x 10.16 cm
- place made
- Zhonghua: Shanghai Shi, Shanghai
- ID Number
- AG*A.2937
- accession number
- 1926.93542
- catalog number
- A.2937
- subject
- Family & Social Life
- Shoe
- Chinese American
- Cultures & Communities
- Clothing & Accessories
- Chinese American
- See more items in
- Work and Industry: Agriculture
- Chinese American
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
- Credit Line
- Mrs. William Chapin Huntington
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