Shoes

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

It is commonly held by fashion historians that through most of history children were dressed as miniature adults once they had passed the age of infancy. While the cuts and favored trimmings frequently correlate, the more extreme adult styles were seldom applied unmodified to childrenswear. It is therefore particularly exciting to find in boyswear this faithful miniature of high-style men's shoes. The design is rendered exactly as seen in adult styles at the time, including the square upturned toe, incised lines on the vamp, and mock button closure with elastic side gores. These shoes were rescued from the ruins of an abandoned shop, so we can only image the little dandy up to the task of wearing such an advanced style.

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