ties that bind

foot binding is the custom of binding the feet of young girls painfully tight to prevent further growth. the practice possibly originated among upperclass court dancers in the early song dynasty but spread and eventually became common among all but the lowest of classes. even today in china, there are families with 'lotus foot ancestry'. 

Chinese foot-binding

the process was started before the arch of the foot had a chance to develop fully, usually between the ages of two and five. binding usually started during the winter months since the feet were more likely to be numb and therefore the pain would not be as extreme.

bound feet in Old China

first, each foot would be soaked in a warm mixture of herbs and animal blood; this was intended to soften the foot and aid the binding. then, the toenails were cut back as far as possible to prevent in-growth and subsequent infections, since the toes were to be pressed tightly into the sole of the foot. cotton bandages, 3 m long and 5 cm wide (10 ft by 2 in), were prepared by soaking them in the blood and herb mixture. to enable the size of the feet to be reduced, the toes on each foot were curled under, then pressed with great force downwards and squeezed into the sole of the foot until the toes broke.

X-ray of bound feet

the broken toes were held tightly against the sole of the foot while the foot was then drawn down straight with the leg and the arch forcibly broken. the bandages were repeatedly wound in a figure-eight movement, starting at the inside of the foot at the instep, then carried over the toes, under the foot, and around the heel, the freshly broken toes being pressed tightly into the sole of the foot. at each pass around the foot, the binding cloth was tightened, pulling the ball of the foot and the heel together, causing the broken foot to fold at the arch, and pressing the toes underneath.

Caring for bound feet

the girl's broken feet required a great deal of care and attention and they would be unbound regularly. each time the feet were unbound, they were washed, the toes carefully checked for injury, and the nails carefully and meticulously trimmed. when unbound, the broken feet were also kneaded to soften them and make the joints and broken bones more flexible, and were soaked in a concoction that caused any necrotic flesh to fall off. immediately after this pedicure, the girl's broken toes were folded back under and the feet were rebound. the bindings were pulled ever tighter each time. this unbinding and rebinding ritual was repeated as often as possible (for the rich at least once daily, for poor peasants two or three times a week), with fresh bindings. 

the most common problem with bound feet was infection. despite the amount of care taken in regularly trimming the toenails, they would often in-grow, becoming infected and causing injuries to the toes. sometimes for this reason the girl's toenails would be peeled back and removed altogether. the tightness of the binding meant that the circulation in the feet was faulty and the circulation to the toes was almost cut off, so any injuries to the toes were unlikely to heal and were likely to gradually worsen and lead to infected toes and rotting flesh.

effects of feet-binding

if the infection in the feet and toes entered the bones, it could cause them to soften, which could result in toes dropping off; although, this was seen as a benefit because the feet could then be bound even more tightly. girls whose toes were more fleshy would sometimes have shards of glass or pieces of broken tiles inserted within the binding next to her feet and between her toes to cause injury and introduce infection deliberately. disease inevitably followed infection, meaning that death from septic shock could result from foot-binding, but a surviving girl was more at risk for medical problems as she grew older.

bound feet

at the beginning of the binding, many of the foot bones would remain broken, often for years. however, as the girl grew older, the bones would begin to heal. even after the foot bones had healed, they were prone to re-breaking repeatedly, especially when the girl was in her teenage years and her feet were still soft. Older women were more likely to break hips and other bones in falls, since they could not balance securely on their feet, and were less able to rise to their feet from a sitting position.

however, bound feet were once considered intensely erotic in chinese culture and a woman with perfect lotus feet was likely to make a more prestigious marriage. qing dynasty sex manuals listed forty-eight different ways of playing with women's bound feet. some men preferred never to see a woman's bound feet, so they were always concealed within tiny 'lotus shoes' and wrappings. 

for men, the primary erotic effect was a function of the lotus gait, the tiny steps and swaying walk of a woman whose feet had been bound. the fact that the bound foot was concealed from men's eyes was sexually appealing. on the other hand, an uncovered foot would also give off a foul odor, as various saprobic micro-organisms would colonize the unwashable folds. bound feet rendered women dependent on their families, particularly their men, and became an alluring symbol of chastity and male ownership, since a woman was largely restricted to her home and could not venture far without an escort or the help of watchful servants.

brings a whole new meaning to the notion of 'ties that bind', doesn't it?

fash'on... BAM!