Even at the beginning of the 20th century, during the formation of Russian industry, aviation, and other industries, foreigners contemptuously called our country a "bast". I must say, they had some reason for this: until the 30s of the last century, some of the villagers had no other shoes except bast shoes and boots. Bast shoes are the oldest shoes in the world. Our distant ancestors, thousands of years ago, learned to craft them from plant fibers. And how was it done in Russia and what bast shoes exist today?
What bast shoes weaved in Russia
In each locality, peasants wove their bast shoes. Bast shoes were made from hemp rope, linden, heather, birch bark and even horsehair. The weaving technique was different - straight or oblique, weaving began with a sock or, conversely, with a backdrop. There was even a block - somewhere there were two blocks - on the right and left foot, and somewhere there was only one (without direction, like on felt boots). By the way, the second option soon spread everywhere: it’s easier to weave, and the second bast shoe does not need to be thrown away if the first one suffers.
The worst bast shoes, uncomfortable and unreliable, were considered to be twigs from willow bark. They were not something to wear, even weave was shameful. Willow bark bast shoes were called Duboviks, but linden was the most popular material. Remember the saying: "Torn off like a sticky"? This expression has remained since the peasants tore the tree clean and the whole bark went to bast. After all, bast shoes are short-lived shoes. A week a peasant wore two pairs of bast shoes, and a year the family needed at least 150 pairs.
Hemp bast shoes
Hemp chuni is a special type of shoe. Hemp rope bast shoes most often were woven not from good strong ropes, but from their remnants, rags and tows. So nothing was lost in the household, and craftsmen did something useful from any waste. True, such shoes were not intended for the street. Hemp rope bast shoes were worn at home and rarely put on the street in dry, warm weather. It is believed that the name "Chuni" is of Finnish origin, since the Finns in Russia were called "Chukhna".
Modern chuni
Currently, people still wear chuni. Today, this word refers to low boots, consisting of rubber galoshes and soft fabric top, insulated galoshes or felt short felt boots. That is, a whole series of very different shoes that share several common features: it is definitely not fashionable, almost shapeless, sometimes not letting in air (if the part that covers the foot is made of rubber), but quite comfortable. In fact, modern Chuni, as well as their predecessors, are designed for everyday wear or for work, not just at home, but on the street.
However, hemp rope bast shoes can be seen not only in the museum. They can often be found on the shelves in souvenir shops. Any person who knows how to use a crochet hook to knit can make bast shoes can even find the material much easier than, say, a real linden bast for ordinary bast shoes. Although they are not very suitable for socks, as they are quite rude and uncomfortable. Still, modern home slippers are much better, and hemp chuni is best worn with some kind of national costume for the holiday.