The buckle on the shoe has not only a practical meaning, but also a decorative one. And sometimes the second seems to be better than the first. Many shoe designers have amazing décor. The shape of the shoe, sock, heel can be repeated from year to year, but if we add a buckle, this is a different shoe. And it is not so important what material the buckle is made of - plastic, silver, bronze, gold ...

The buckle has a long lifespan in shoe history. It is hardly possible to remember when it all began, because since ancient times a person had to use belts and belts. And, as you know, no belt can do without a buckle. Initially, these were rather rough leather strips with leather or bone buckles, then more expensive bronze buckles appeared.



All the most ancient cultures from Sumer and Assyria to the great eastern civilizations of India and China have not yet used a belt. But buckles from those cultures still exist. The ancient Greeks and Romans also did not wear belts with buckles, they used belts, but there were still buckles. Poorer people used bone buckles, and the rich and noble - expensive bronze buckles, covered with a thin layer of silver.

Buckles were used as fasteners, and were widespread in the everyday life of the common people, and in military ammunition of all ancient civilizations.

When firearms appeared, and the warrior had to carry, in addition to a saber or a sword, additional equipment, he had to think about a stronger and more reliable attachment to his own body. Buckles appeared.

Most likely, belts with buckles in military ammunition trace their ancestry to a decorative strap with a buckle for wearing a hunting horn (14th and 15th centuries). Around the same time, shoes began to be decorated with buckles. Buckles appeared in fashion Louis XIV... They were everywhere - in slinges, on shoes and on military hats.



The buckles were also attached as insignia. For example, belts with buckles of a certain shape and color meant one regiment, another color - another regiment or department. In the armies of different countries, the belts and buckles on them, or the buckles on the shoes and hats, were different in shape and color, so as not to confuse "friends" with "aliens."

In the 18th century under Louis XV, buckles were precious objects and a symbol of the status that wore them. The buckles on the shoes were impressive in size, sometimes reaching the point of absurdity, disrupting the proportions in the appearance, they did not correspond to the figure, height or age. Glittering buckles on gouty feet looked ridiculous, and the owner of such shoes is pitiful and ridiculous.

Gradually buckles left the shoe scene by the 90s of the 18th century, and for a long time the power belonged to the laces. But in the 1900s, elements of 18th century fashion appeared in footwear, for example, the Louis heel and large buckles in the Cromwell style. Then the buckles were replaced with buttons again, remember the Mary Jane models in the 20s of the last century, there was a button. And if buckles appeared somewhere in women's shoes, then they were small secret items that had only practical use.

Buckles on shoes made themselves known in the 60s of the last century. At this time, a new Roger Vivier model appeared - the Pilgrim lacquer boats. They wore low heels with square toes and a large square buckle. At the same time, the buckle adorned Mary Jane shoes, then platform shoes from the 1970s.



Since then, buckles have begun to appear on shoes regularly from season to season - somewhere there were more of them, and somewhere less. In the collection Vivienne westwood they took root and became an integral part. For example, Vivienne Westwood still produces pirate boots.

In the 21st century, the pirate image became popular thanks to the movie "Pirates of the Caribbean".Today we think that pirates wore boots decorated with belts and buckles. However, no. They wore what they could steal, and only the captain of a pirate ship could wear boots. The team wore heels with square toes and large tongues, but again with buckles. And those pirate boots with wide tops and buckled belts are a Hollywood invention.

Another type of shoe with a buckle. In the twentieth century, women's shoes appeared with an ankle strap fastened with a buckle. In the 1946 film, the beauty Rita Hayworth in the striptease scene in the movie "Gilda" in shoes with ankle straps.

Biker boots - an attribute of masculinity began their existence first as boots for lumberjacks, then, when the passion for motorcycles reached its peak, they began to be worn by bikers around the world. Created in the 30s of the last century especially for motorcyclists, they have become the personification of the image of a rebellious person. Models of biker boots, of course, with buckles, and in general the more metal, the better.


Today in the season 2016-2017 one of the fashion trends in footwear, like sometime in 2011-2012, is buckle again. In the collections of famous fashion houses, you can find a wide variety of buckles - from small and elegant to rough and bulky. Buckles are everywhere - on sandals, shoes, loafers, boots, ankle boots, boots. Models in which there are many buckles at once have become relevant.

And if tomorrow buckles become out of fashion again, you know, they will definitely come back ...