Sandals and Floaters are simple
footwear composed of a sole that is held onto the foot by straps. Though the
ancient Greeks did not invent the style, they did create many types of leather
sandals, developing shoemaking into a skilled art and introducing a wide variety
of footwear styles for all classes of men and women. By 500 b.c.e. the average
Greek citizen could tell much about the people that passed in the street by the
style of sandals they wore.
Early Greek sandals were made from a
stiff leather or wooden sole to which leather straps were attached. These
straps usually went between the wearer's big toe and second toe and around the
back of the ankle to hold the sole firmly to the bottom of the foot.
Much of the
individual design of these sandals was created by the different ways the
leather straps wrapped around the foot and ankle. Wealthy people wore soft
leather sandals, sometimes dyed in various colors. The very wealthy sometimes
even had gilded sandals, or sandals painted gold, in which the leather was covered
with real gold.
Some high officials and stage actors
wore sandals called buskins, with tall soles made of cork, which made them
appear taller. Some shoemakers carved designs or placed nails in the soles of
their sandals in various patterns, so that the footprints of the wearer left a
distinctive mark. One pair of ancient
Greek Sandals and Floaters has been
found that left the words "Follow me," written in every footprint,
and many experts believe that the shoes must have belonged to a prostitute.
Workers wore heavy-duty sandals,
such as the thick leather crepida, which were made with an extra-large sole and
wrapped around to protect the sides of the foot, then laced up the top.
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