The carbatina (pl. carbatinae) was a kind of shoe common among the rural poor of ancient Greece and Rome from remote antiquity to around the 3rd century, consisting of a piece of rawhide pulled around the foot and then tied down to hold it in place. Having no upper or separate sole, the carbatina is among the simplest forms of footwear in the world and is sometimes used as a general name for similar footwear in other cultures.
Latin carbatina was a transcription of Greek karbatínē (καρβατίνη), probably cognate with kárphō (κἁρφω) and originally meaning something like "made of dried skin" or "hide". [2] Rather than referring to all leather shoes, however, use seems to be entirely restricted to simple forms of shoes worn by the rural poor or to footwear hastily assembled from limited materials. [2] [3] It is used in Aristotle for a similarly basic covering used to protect the feet of camels [4] and in Philo for a thick leather tarp used as protection by attackers during sieges. [5] [6]
The usual Greek carbatina was a single piece of rawhide [2] with the outer edge cut into thongs or having holes for thongs to be inserted. It was worn by stepping onto the open hide, pulling the sides up over the foot, and tying the thongs together to secure it. [7] Carbatinae are sometimes mistakenly said to resemble modern ballet shoes or moccasins, [8] [9] but this is only true in the sense of having a simple and mostly unpadded sole. Because of the simple sole, by the medieval period carbatina-style shoes were typically worn with some form of footwrap, sock, or other padding. Simple, cheap, and requiring frequent replacement, carbatinae were seldom decorated, although one studded with openwork was recovered at Praetorium Agrippinae in the modern Netherlands [10] and the thongs themselves could sometimes be created and interlaced in intricate ways similar to openwork.
Some authors include with the carbatinae proper leather forms or slightly more complex designs where the rawhide was raised and stitched together along one side to create a heel and provide a better fit [10] or where the hide over the toes was stitched to strengthen it for longer use. [8]
Carbatinae were worn in antiquity by the people of the Middle East, Greece, and Roman Italy. Easily made without special tools or training, they were the emergency footwear used by the Ten Thousand mercenaries during their retreat back to Greece after the execution of their leaders by the satrap Tissaphernes. [2] By the time of the Roman Empire, use was generally restricted to the rural poor [1] although they remained a step up from going barefoot, which by then was a mark of extreme poverty or slavery. [9] Carbatinae were seldom used even by poor Romans by the 3rd century, [11] by then having been replaced by shoes, slippers, boots, and other footwear. However, equivalent shoes continued to be worn by the ancient Germans, by the subjects of their successor states, and by the rural poor generally into the Middle Ages and Early Modern Period.
A shoe is an item of footwear intended to protect and comfort the human foot. Though the human foot can adapt to varied terrains and climate conditions, it is vulnerable, and shoes provide protection. Form was originally tied to function, but over time, shoes also became fashion items. Some shoes are worn as safety equipment, such as steel-toe boots, which are required footwear at industrial worksites.
Footwear refers to garments worn on the feet, which typically serve the purpose of protection against adversities of the environment such as wear from rough ground; stability on slippery ground; and temperature.
Tabi are traditional Japanese socks worn with thonged footwear such as zori, dating back to the 15th century.
Clogs are a type of footwear that has a thick, rigid sole typically made of wood, although in American English, shoes with rigid soles made of other materials are also called clogs.
Flip-flops are a type of light sandal-like shoe, typically worn as a form of casual footwear. They consist of a flat sole held loosely on the foot by a Y-shaped strap known as a toe thong that passes between the first and second toes and around both sides of the foot. This style of footwear has been worn by people of many cultures throughout the world, originating as early as the ancient Egyptians in 1500 BC. In the United States the modern flip-flop may have had its design taken from the traditional Japanese zōri after World War II, as soldiers brought them back from Japan.
Zori, also rendered as zōri, are thonged Japanese sandals made of rice straw, cloth, lacquered wood, leather, rubber, or—most commonly and informally—synthetic materials. They are a slip-on descendant of the tied-on waraji sandal.
Sandals are an open type of shoe, consisting of a sole held to the wearer's foot by straps going over the instep and around the ankle. Sandals can also have a heel. While the distinction between sandals and other types of footwear can sometimes be blurry, the common understanding is that a sandal leaves all or most of the foot exposed. People may choose to wear sandals for several reasons, among them comfort in warm weather, economy, and as a fashion choice. Usually, people wear sandals in warmer climates or during warmer parts of the year in order to keep their feet cool and dry. The risk of developing athlete's foot is lower than with enclosed shoes, and the wearing of sandals may be part of the treatment regimen for such an infection.
Shoemaking is the process of making footwear.
Mule is a style of shoe that has no back or constraint around the foot's heel. There, mules were bedroom slippers and not worn in public. Through the centuries, mules have changed in style and purpose and are no longer just boudoir shoes but are worn at any time, for any occasion. In addition to Western examples, mules come from cultures such as Turkey and Egypt, and appear in popular culture, from famous paintings to iconic celebrities' shoes.
Opanci are traditional peasant shoes worn in Southeastern Europe. The attributes of the opanci are a construction of leather, lack of laces, durable, and various endings on toes. In Serbia, the design of the horn-like ending on toes indicates the region of origin, though this specific design is not exclusive to Serbia. The opanci are also considered as the traditional peasant footwear for people in the Balkan region. In Bulgaria they are referred to as "tsarvuli".
A court shoe or pump is a shoe with a low-cut front, or vamp, with either a shoe buckle or a black bow as ostensible fastening. Deriving from the 17th- and 18th-century dress shoes with shoe buckles, the vamped pump shape emerged in the late 18th century. By the turn of the 19th century, shoe buckles were increasingly replaced by black bows, which has remained the contemporary style for men's formal wear, leather or patent leather evening pumps ever since. This latter style is sometimes also called an opera pump or opera slipper.
A Goodyear welt is a strip of leather, rubber, or plastic that runs along the perimeter of a shoe outsole. The basic principle behind the Goodyear welt machine was invented in 1862 by August Destouy, who designed a machine with a curved needle to stitch turned shoes. The machine was then improved in 1869 and later by Destouy and, more importantly, Daniel Mills, an English mechanic, both employed by Charles Goodyear Jr., the son of Charles Goodyear. It has been noted by historians that Goodyear was a frequent visitor to the shoe factory of William J. Dudley, founder of Johnston & Murphy, where early work on sole stitching equipment was performed.
Caligae are heavy-soled hobnailed military sandal-boots that were worn as standard issue by Roman legionary foot-soldiers and auxiliaries, including cavalry.
Jika-tabi are a style of footwear with a divided toe, originating in Japan. They are similar to tabi socks in both appearance and construction. Though they can be worn with traditional thonged footwear such as geta and zōri, jika-tabi are mostly designed and made to be worn alone as outdoor footwear, resembling boots that reach roughly to the mid-calf. Jika-tabi are also known as 'tabi boots'.
A tsarouchi is a type of shoe, which is typically known nowadays as part of the traditional uniform worn by the Evzones of the Greek Presidential Guard.
In footwear, a hobnail is a short nail with a thick head used to increase the durability of boot soles or provide traction.
Clothing in ancient Rome generally comprised a short-sleeved or sleeveless, knee-length tunic for men and boys, and a longer, usually sleeved tunic for women and girls. On formal occasions, adult male citizens could wear a woolen toga, draped over their tunic, and married citizen women wore a woolen mantle, known as a palla, over a stola, a simple, long-sleeved, voluminous garment that modestly hung to cover the feet. Clothing, footwear and accoutrements identified gender, status, rank and social class. This was especially apparent in the distinctive, privileged official dress of magistrates, priesthoods and the military.
Clothing in ancient Greece refers to clothing starting from the Aegean bronze age to the Hellenistic period. Clothing in ancient Greece included a wide variety of styles but primarily consisted of the chiton, peplos, himation, and chlamys. Ancient Greek civilians typically wore two pieces of clothing draped about the body: an undergarment and a cloak. The people of ancient Greece had many factors that determined what they wore and when they wore it.
A soccus or sýkkhos, sometimes given in translation as a slipper, was a loosely fitting slip-on shoe in Ancient Greece and Rome with a leather sole and separate leather, bound without the use of hobnails. The word appears to originate from the languages of ancient Anatolia. They were worn by Ancient Greek comedic actors, contrasted with the cothurni worn by tragedians, and were borrowed into Latin and worn by the ancient Romans. The soccus was considered effeminate, and the emperor Caligula is described as having worn them, possibly as a form of insult. Later socci became popular with the general public, and several types were listed in the Edict of Diocletian. The word was adopted into West Germanic languages for similarly light footwear, eventually becoming English socks.
The calceus was the common upper-class male footwear of the Roman Republic and Empire. Normally made of leather and hobnailed, it was flat soled and typically reached the lower shin, entirely covering the foot and ankle. It was secured with crossed thongs or laces. Equivalent to a short boot or high-top shoe, it was lighter than the military caliga but sturdier than slip-on shoes like the soccus and able to easily handle outdoor use.
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