Throughout Europe, shoes have long been a symbol of prosperity, luck, and fertility. With the expansion of the porcelain industry, and the Victorian's love of knick-knacks, miniature shoes of china and porcelain, often with elaborate adornments, became a popular collectible and gift. This fanciful footwear is by the German firm of Galluba and Hofmann, demonstrating that this company produced products other its famed bathing beauties and fashion ladies, often featured on this blog.
The shoes are lavishly decorated with applied flowers and gilt (I wonder why I have never seen on of their lovely ladies so bedecked?). The pink shoes are trimmed with blue forget-me-not flowers, a popular decoration on china ornaments of the period, which were often given as gifts. Both pieces are 4 inches long and the boot is 3.5 inches high.
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Each is stamped on the sole with Galluba's crowned shield mark.
