The Painful Chinese Women Procedure of Foot-Binding

The thousand-year tradition, which is now prohibited thing of the past with these old ladies. British photographer Joe Farrell (Jo Farrell) have documented the ancient custom of “foot-binding”, practiced in China since the beginning of the X until the beginning of XX century. He will go down in history with these elderly women.

Chinese women have experienced the painful procedure of foot-binding

Leg Su Xi Rong

Foot-binding process began before the girl’s foot was fully formed – between the ages of 4 and 9 years old.

Foot Yang Jing After soaking in a warm herbal teas and animal blood, the foot bent with such force that his fingers pressed into the sole of the foot and break, and then bandage was imposed in the form of “Eight”, starting with the arch of the foot, around the fingers and then finally around the heel.

Zhang Yong Ying, which at the time was 77 years of photographing (1928) After each turn of the bandage bandage tight tighten.

80-year-old Zhang Xu Lin (1927-2010)

It was believed that mothers should not carry out this procedure, since the mother would feel sorry for her daughter and would not be able to tighten the bandage tight enough.

There was a Chinese saying: “A mother can not love both her daughter and her leg.”

Legs Zhang Yun Ying shoes “lotus”. Last plant produces like shoes, closed in 1999.

The emergence of the custom associated with the story of how Emperor Li Yu (937-978) asked one of his concubines, Yao Nhan, wrap strips of white silk legs so that they looked like a crescent moon; Then she danced “Lotus Dance” at their fingertips. Women from high society began to imitate it, then the practice became widespread.

75-year-old Su Rong Xi (1933)

Since foot binding effect on women’s ability to walk, this custom came to be regarded as a sign of wealth – the rich do not have to walk or work in the fields.

Su Xi Rong, her husband and her chick

Chinese authorities from the 1600s several attempts to ban the foot binding, but the custom is gradually faded away only after the Xinhai Revolution in 1911 and the establishment of the republic.