Socks as we know them (in western europe) were one of the technologies acquired from the near/mid east during the crusades. (knit socks that is)
before knit socks, people wound strips of cloth round their feet and legs, and secured them (in UK, Henry the VIII was the last royal to do so--) by the time of Elizabeth I, socks are a growing cottage industry, (and ERI is first in UK to have silk stockings)--with the poorest of the poor having mastered the technology (and the rich very willing to buy hand knit sock, rather than winding cloth)
but wrapped strips are still used as footwear(at least according to one knitter, who says they are still standard footgear in russian army!) --where they are called puttees!
are there any members of SCA (society for creative anachronism) or any one else who know a word that was used for foot bindings? (foot bindings makes me think of the chinese practice!)
what ever the word was, it obviously fell out of general use, (which is why we borrowed puttee's from hindi, and now use that word.)
OP
