Читать книгу The Art of the Shoe - Marie-Josèphe Bossan - Страница 8

The writings of the apostles Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John confirm the prediction John the Baptist made while baptizing people with water in Bethania, beyond the River Jordan: each evoke Jesus’ shoes through the voice of the prophet: “…but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry” (Matthew, 3:11). “And he preached, saying, ‘There comes One after me who is mightier than I, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down and loose” (Mark, 1:7).

“I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose” (Luke, 3:16).

“…but there stands One among you whom you do not know. It is He who, coming after me, is preferred before me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose” (John, 26–27).

This statement (repeated four times) refers to sandals that were attached to the foot with a strap. These were typical during the Roman occupation of Palestine and were worn by Jesus’ contemporaries. The New Testament mentions them on numerous occasions. If we look at the story of Mathew and Luke in the calling of the seventy-two disciples, Jesus advises them to walk barefoot: “Provide neither gold nor silver nor copper in your money belts, nor bag for your journey, nor two tunics, nor sandals, nor staffs… (Matthew, 10:9–10) And whoever will not receive you nor hear your words, when you depart from that house or city, shake off the dust from your feet” (Matthew, 10:14) “…behold, I send you out as lambs among wolves. Carry neither moneybag, knapsack, nor sandals…” (Luke, 10:3–4).

But Mark gives a different version: “He commanded them to take nothing for the journey except a staff – no bag, no bread, no copper in their money belts – but to wear sandals, and not to put on two tunics…” (Mark, 6:8–9).

Although it emphasizes asceticism, Mark’s version retains the shoe as a symbol of travel, as Jean-Paul Roux explains in an article in the journal of the Institute of Calceology entitled, “The symbolism of the shoe in the religions descended from Abraham: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.” In Luke’s parable of the prodigal son, the father says of his newly found son, “Bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet” (Luke, 15:22). Only free men could enjoy sandals, as slaves did not have the right to wear shoes. Elsewhere in the New Testament, the account of Saint Peter’s deliverance in the Acts of the Apostles contains a story about sandals: “That night Peter was sleeping, bound with two chains between two soldiers; and the guards before the door were keeping the prison. Now behold, an angel of the Lord stood by him, and a light shone in the prison; and he struck Peter on the side and raised him up, saying, ‘Arise quickly!’

And his chains fell off his hands. Then the angel said to him, ‘Gird yourself and tie on your sandals’; and so he did. And he said to him, ‘Put on your garment and follow me’” (Acts, 12:6–8).

In the later iconography of Philippe de Champaigne’s seventeenth-century painting, Christ Nailed to the Cross (Augustins Museum, Toulouse), sandals like the strapped versions evoked in the prophesy of John the Baptist are depicted carelessly strewn on the ground. Finally, if we turn to the Gospel of Saint Matthew, we read: “Now in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them, walking on the sea. And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, ‘It is a ghost!’ And they cried out for fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.’ And Peter answered Him and said, ‘Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.’ So He said, ‘Come.’ And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus. But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, ‘Lord, save me!’” (Matthew, 14:25–30). This evangelical testimony was the subject of Boucher’s eighteenth-century painting, Saint Peter Walking on Water, remarkable in that the apostle is shoeless, whereas Jesus is depicted in magnificent sandals based on the type worn by Roman patricians.

In conclusion, the simpler shoes (conceived for walking rather than for ceremonial use) discovered in the fortress of Massada built by Herod in the desert of the Dead Sea provide a good indication of the shoes worn by Christ and his contemporaries mentioned by the Apostles. These shoes are also more in keeping with Christ’s spirit of poverty. Because of their surprisingly modern concept, their use will span the centuries, particularly in Africa, and they can be found in many third-world countries today, often reduced to a simple sole cut out from a salvaged tire with a y-shaped thong. The sandal of Jesus moreover heralds the work of certain 21st-century designers who would take inspiration from the sandal and update its appearance.

13. Man’s slipper, vamp decorated with motifs gilded with gold leaf. Egypt, Coptic era. International Shoe Museum, Romans.

14. Ivory statuette of a Greek actor wearing cothurnes. Petit-Palais Museum, Paris.