a small antique folk art mantlepiece brass shoe.
height ... 70mm ... width ... 120mm
during the victorian era it was fashionable to collect small shoes. boots and shoes were given as love tokens, this pair of brass boots share the same sentiment and were probably made by a suitor and designed to sit pride of place on the parlour mantlepiece.the tradition of giving love tokens is centuries old and was particularly popular amongst rural and maritime communities. love tokens were given at any time of year and not just restricted to valentines day.
boots and shoes have been a symbol of good luck for centuries, often exchanged between lovers to bring good luck in marriage. sometimes an old boot or shoe would be hidden in the home of a newly wed couple. inside it would be a single grain of corn to encourage a mouse to nest and breed, from this came the idea that the couple would have lots of children. to some extent the tradition survives today, though the meaning has been lost, in the tying of an old boot to the back bumper of the newly weds car.
