I had a few hours free in Toronto this week to fit in some nerdy tourist stops... first to the
Bata Shoe Museum, which has a great permanent collection and two brilliant temporary exhibitions (
Standing Tall, an exploration of men's heel height and gender identity throughout history, and
Fashion Victims, showcasing restrictive, dangerous, poisonous, and flammable clothing and footwear of the Victorian era), then to the Toronto Public Library to see the
Merril Collection of Science Fiction, Speculation & Fantasy and the
Osborne Collection of Early Children's Books.
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| "chromatic torpedoes" - dye would transfer and stain the wearer's feet |
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| tartan boots, mid-19th Century |
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| poisonous arsenic-dyed Victorian footwear |
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| 1920s deep-sea diving boot |
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| sock knitted from human hair, 13th Century |
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| dandified
jack boot, early 1700s |
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| despite the Wonderland perspective, my feet are huge compared to most historical shoes |
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| open stacks at the Toronto Public Library |
