The bast shoes on display hold an important place in the exhibition of the Nizhny Lomov Museum of Local Lore. The master crafted this item from bast in the 19th century. Bast shoes were a traditional type of Russian footwear and were very popular. These shoes varied in design and weaving style. The most primitive versions were made from the bark of deciduous trees such as linden, elm, birch, oak, and willow.

Bast shoes were strong and durable. In addition to the raw materials, they differed in the number of strands used, which could reach 12. Hemp rope was often used to make these items.

Similar shoes were found among the West and South Slavs, Baltic and Scandinavian peoples, as well as those of the Finnic and Volga groups. In Ancient Russia, not all peasants could weave bast shoes. Bast harvesters would go to the forest in groups. Specialists would remove the bast strips with wooden sticks and tie them in bundles. Before weaving, the material would be soaked in warm water for a day. About 60 bundles, or 300 pairs, of bast shoes would come out of one cartload.

A wooden block and metal hooks, as well as kochedyks — special devices with a wooden handle and a kind of awl — were used for weaving. One pair of bast shoes lasted for about ten days in winter, but only four days in summer. In the 19th century, a pair of bast shoes cost three kopecks, while crudely-made boots cost about six rubles — a significant amount for a common villager.

Centuries later, bast shoes have become a symbol of Russian culture, reminding us of our ancestors’ way of life. Archaeologists have found these woven shoes during excavations, which were characteristic of villagers. These shoes can also be seen in paintings by Russian artists, such as Ivan Bilibin’s “At the Well” and his illustration to the fairytale “The Frog Princess”, and Alexey Venetsianov’s “A Peasant Boy Putting on Bast Shoes.”