MODERN SHOE

Unknown artist

Childs leather ankle boot and miniature bible, discovered in the cavity of a chimney during renovation works in 1982. Within the pillar of the fire place was a down-draft flue that went from ground level and extended all the way up into the loft and the little boot and bible were found in the flue.The ankle boot is small and has four botton tastles, however only one retains its globular button. The inside step of the boot shows signs of extreme wear, which indicates that the boot was deposited in a used condition. There is a small heel to the boot which is attached to the sole by metal rivets. Inside the boot was a miniature bible. The bible has the remains of an iron cover, although most of it is now missing save for a corner piece. The bible, known as a mini “Mite” Bible or “Thumb Bible” was published in Glasgow by David Bryce and Son. The date on the inside cover is 1901.The finds came from Priory Cottage, which used to be two workmens cottage constructed in 1880. The date of the bible indicates that the finds were placed in the chimney at least 20 years after it was constructed. The cottage was part of the Winchelsea Estate and owned by the Finch-Hatton Family. The film 'Out Of Africa' was partly based on this family.According to Brian Hoggard, 26.2% of shoes are found in chimneys, usually on a ledge within the chimney, and 11.3% are pairs of shoes - most are odd. 40% of shoes belonged to children. The process of depositing shoes as protective amulets stems back probably as far as the 14th century. The shoes form part of a wider tradition of anit-witchcraft amulets such as witch bottles, mummified cats and written charms, all of which were designed to ward off evil spirits and protect the owner and family from spells cast by witches. Since most shoes show signs of extensive wear, it is thought that the shoe would have acted as a spirit decoy, attracting it to the used personal item, where it would then meet the powerful word of God which would destroy the evil.Most anti-witchcraft artefacts date to the 17th and 18th century, and so this is a really late item dating to 1901, showing that this tradition carried on to relatively recent times in some parts of the country.