Cleveland Museum of Art

Pair of Boots

Date

907–1125

Medium

Silk: tapestry weave; two kinds of metal threads

Culture

Northern China, Liao dynasty (907-1125)

Department

Textiles

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

This magnificent pair of boots, made of finely woven silk tapestry ( kesi ), features two phoenixes in flight chasing a flaming pearl. Although the bright colors of the fabric have become muted from being buried in a tomb and the gold threads are partly disintegrated, the once lavish use of gold and the Chinese-inspired phoenix motif suggest that the boots were made for a member of the Liao imperial family, probably a woman. At the time the boots were made in the Khitan-occupied territory in northern China, footbinding was introduced among upper-class women in southern China. The high value the Khitan people accorded to boots relates to their mobile, seminomadic lifestyle. The boots have a complete padding and lining, but the soles do not show signs of being worn.

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