Black Oxford wingtip shoes worn by Melvin Van Peebles: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A pair of black Oxford wingtip shoes worn by Melvin Van Peebles. The shoes are made from black faux leather and feature a decorative design of punched leather with a scalloped edge that turns upwards at the center of each toe cap, runs along the counters, and encircles the ankle. The shoes fasten with two black polyester braided cord laces strung through ten holes at the front. The shoes feature a 1” rubber heel and the outer soles are made from black rubber with a molded non-skid rubber pattern near the toe. The size [9 1/2W] molded on the arch. The inside of each shoe is lined with black synthetic (possibly polyester) fabric with a layer of black foam behind it around the sides and the inner soles are made from black molded rubber. At the bottom of each tongue is white text that reads [ALL MAN MADE MATERIALS / MADE IN CHINA / 81700W]. There is no brand label.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: mid to late 20th century
• Created by: Unidentified
• Subject of: Melvin Van Peebles, American, 1932 - 2021
• Type: oxfords
• Type: shoes (footwear)
• Medium: imitation leather, polyester, rubber, and plastic
• Dimensions: H x W x D (2024.60.16a): 3 5/8 × 4 × 11 1/4 in. (9.2 × 10.2 × 28.6 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W x D (2024.60.16b): 3 11/16 × 4 × 11 3/16 in. (9.3 × 10.2 × 28.4 cm)
• Place made: United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Actors
• Topic: Black Enterprise
• Topic: Clothing and dress
• Topic: Fashion
• Topic: Fashion design
• Topic: Film
• Topic: Musicians
• Object number: 2024.60.16ab
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The displayed image also has an explicit CC0 designation. The underlying object's rights statement is: No known copyright restrictions Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.