Prims By the Water

Monday, July 24, 2017

Royal Shoe Proclamation

HEAR YE

HEAR YE

By Royal Shoe Proclamation
of Sir Bob

I, Janice have a propensity of purchasing
too many shoes.

Yes friends you heard it first here.
I have enough shoes according to Bob.
I am by no means Imelda Marcos in which I have
a closet full of shoes.
My problem is purchasing antique ones.

I so love them, and well when I saw this
adorable pair in our store from a vendor of ours....
they had to come home with me.


Since I so love antique shoes,
I thought I would talk to you tonight about
concealing shoes.

Have any of you heard about this before?

Concealing (hiding) shoes came about as early as
the 14th century.


By concealing shoes in chimneys, walls,
 under floorboards, in the roof,
around doors and windows and even in ceilings
would protect the living from
ghosts, demons and witches. 


Witches were believed to be attracted by the human scent
of a shoe, and after entering one found themselves
trapped as they were unable to reverse their spell
upon entering a place with a hidden shoe.


Also the belief that shoes had the power to protect
against evil was said to have succeeded in trapping
the devil in a boot, a legend that may have its origin
in a more ancient folk belief, in which the Church
was attempting to convert one into an
"Approved Christian Rite".


Concealing shoes was also thought to capture
or repel a troublesome spirit, or harmful demon.


Others perceived concealing shoes as an intention
to bestow fertility to female members of the household.
There is a long standing connection 
that concealing a shoe served as a fertility charm.
which exemplifies the nursery rhyme 
"There was an old woman who lived in a shoe"


Which reason is more accurate one may never know.
Concealed shoes have been found in homes and buildings
throughout Europe, Australia, Eastern Canada
and The New England states.
Of the shoes found when renovating these early homes
and buildings, 98% were baby shoes.
The most commonplace where the shoes were found,
were in chimneys and hearths.
For whatever reason this practice also died out in
the 20th century.


Maybe next time I find another pair of antique
shoes or boots, I should tell Bob it's to rid our home
of ghosts, witches and demons. :-)
Do you think he will believe that malarkey?

Aren't they cute though?

{Still on the hunt for some black and red ones}

Shoe Proclamation Blessings To All!
Janice 






6 comments:

  1. He should believe you...they are just too, too sweet!! I love those little shoes too...I have a shelf full of them!!

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  2. Those new shoes are totally cute!! I do love your collection too. The history of shoes and witches is very interesting and I enjoyed hearing all about this old tradition and belief. Hehe, my guess is that Bob won't be buying your shoe story, so maybe it is better to purchase and ask for forgiveness after the fact!! LOL!!

    Hope your mouth is healing and feeling better each day.

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  3. darling shoes! thank you for sharing the history, I just love information like that next time you purchase shoes, put them in your closet for a month- when you bring them out to display and your husband asks if they are new, you can say no, I've had these for a while. lol that's what I used to do

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  4. the tale is so sweet.. love the shoes..

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  5. I have never heard those stories before. But love your shoes.
    Cathy

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  6. Hi Janice,
    I've read some history behind hidden shoes and it is really interesting! Thanks for sharing! Those shoes are adorable and I also love little shoes!! Have a large bowl of them and they are so sweet!!! A girl can NEVER have too many shoes!!!
    Heart Hugs~
    Julie

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