An exhibition of ‘killer’ shoes collected by the founder of the Scholl footwear chain is now on display at the Northampton Museum and Art Gallery.
The Scholl Collection of Footwear was put together by Dr William Scholl who had a lifelong interest in foot health, starting his career in 1899 in a small shoe store in Chicago that specialised in comfort footwear. He became so concerned for customers with painful foot conditions that he enrolled in medial school to study the anatomy and physiology of the foot.
Over the course of his career Dr Scholl collected an eclectic range of shoes which would come into the ‘killer’ category and would be strange if not painful to wear. The collection was donated to the London Foot Hospital to help in teaching before being passed to the Northampton Museum and Art Gallery in 2005.
Sue Constable, Northampton Borough Council museum shoe expert, said: “There are some really interesting shoes on display, including a shoe made from the skin of a crocodile’s foot, a warrior’s boot from the North West Frontier area of India and a man’s shoe with a lift to make the wearer appear taller.
“We are delighted to have these shoes as part of our collection and are very grateful to Camden and Paddington PCT for donating them.”
The Scholl Collection of Footwear will be showing at the Northampton Museum and Art Gallery until the end of May. Opening times are Monday to Saturday 10am to 5pm and Sunday 2pm to 5pm. Admission is free.
Soc Chiropodists & Podiatrists 28-Apr-2006
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