Unusual, Substantial Pair of (Heavy!) Metal Salesman Sample/Display Loafers with Tassels praying drawing or maybe more

or maybe more

with one button eye perhaps reinforced at some point and one light surface scratch to the velvet down his front as documented - minor

With a big gray sky

and based on a little research late 18th century or seems about right

and extra nice that there is a base to squeeze handle

Unusual, Substantial Pair of (Heavy!) Metal Salesman Sample/Display Loafers with Tassels praying drawing or maybe moreCurious. I don't know that I'd ever seen a pair of metal salesman sample shoes before, but I'm more or less certain that is what these are, given their quality and scale and specificity. (Or maybe a shoe company's gift for the loafer salesman of the year?!) They're quite substantial, beautifully crafted and quite striking, all the more so in hand, with their surface finish evincing carved stone (I keep thinking of catlinite) as much as anything and