Death for believers in the Christian faith is not an end, but a preparation for a new birth. Early Christians wished to present themselves in their finest clothes at the moment of resurrection of the body. For women that included hair covering and also shoes.
These exceptionally well-preserved leather women's shoes have a high front coming up to a double lobed extension, and finish at the heel with a high tab. The shoes may have been originally purple or red, and were extensively embellished with gold leaf. The disc-shaped leather motif on the vamp encloses eight smaller circles, these decorated further with embroidered stars.
