papal shoes
Regarding papal footwear, one must distinguish between papal liturgical sandals, papal slippers and papal shoes.
As did many noblemen, the Pope wore slippers (pantofole) inside his residences and leather shoes outside. The indoor slippers were made of red velvet or silk and were heavily decorated in gold braid, with a gold cross in the middle.
Papal outdoor shoes were made of plain red Morocco leather and had a wide cross in gold braid. The cross once extended across the shoe and down to the sole. In the eighteenth century the ends of the cross were shortened, as shown in the photo of Pius VII's shoes. This old-fashioned type of dress shoe is very thin-soled and is sometimes called "pantofola liscia" or smooth slipper model.
The papal hat, mozzetta, cloak (tabarro) and shoes are the only remnant of the former red costume of the popes. Since St. Pope Pius V (died 1572), the popes have worn mainly white.
During the octave of Easter, instead of red, the popes wore a white damasked "pascal" mozzetta and white silk slippers.
After 1958, Pope John XXIII added gold buckles to the outdoor papal shoes, making them similar to the red shoes worn by cardinals outside of Rome. Pope Paul VI eliminated the gold cross and completely discontinued the custom of kissing the papal foot. Paul VI can be seen wearing red buckled shoes in photographs from his 1964 trip to Jerusalem.
In 1969, Paul VI abolished buckles from all ecclesiastical shoes, which had been de rigueur at the Papal Court and for prelates. He also discontinued the use of the indoor velvet papal slippers and the pascal mozetta and shoes. Since then, Paul VI and John Paul I have worn plain red leather shoes whereas Pope John Paul II adopted brown shoes, although had worn the red-brown shoes earlier in his pontificate.
Paul VI, John Paul I, and John Paul II were buried in papal red leather shoes. Pope Benedict XVI has restored the custom of wearing red shoes or loafers, which are provided by the pope's personal cobbler[1].
See also
References
- ^ Does The Pope Wear Prada? April 25, 2006 in the Wall Street Journal. Accessed January 19, 2007
External links
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