Bronzed baby shoes
Origin: Germany
Material: bronzed leather
Date: beginning of the 20th century
Lender: Karl-Heinz Blume
Beliefs and Luck
Sitting Hermes
Material: Bronze
Date: modern replica of a Roman copy of Hermes by Lysippos (around 350 BC)
Lender: Burg Giebichenstein
"Take your shoes off, because the place were you are standing is holy ground." (Moses)
Shoes "ground" us our entire life. They protect us from injuries. For that reason, shoes have a positive connotation for the majority of people. They are not only footwear, but also magical objects which bring luck or ward off demons. Therefore, shoes play a special role in many important moments from the cradle to the grave.
The great symbolic meaning of shoes is shown in various customs, rituals and myths in the most diverse cultures of the world.
Baby Shoes
Protected from the very beginning
A child’s first shoes are something special. They take their first steps in them and conquer their new world. Because baby shoes are connected to the safety and self-determination of a child, they are also associated with luck and protection.
Already in the 19th century, parents had their children’s shoes bronzed and kept them as a talisman. Today such shoes can be seen hanging from the rearview mirror of a car to ensure a safe ride for its occupants.
Wedding Shoes
In love, engaged, married...
Several shoes-related customs are linked to love, weddings and marriage. A groom drinking from the bride's shoe symbolizes the couple's bond and seals the marriage. And as long as the bride keeps her shoes, the marriage will last.
Bridal Shoes
Origin: Germany
Date: 1910
Lender: Museum and Archive in Pirmasens
