Episode 32: The Shoemaker of Constantinople

32: The Shoemaker of Constantinople
byTales of Britain and Ireland.

Walter Map’s charming little tale of a Princess, ambition, obsession, one of the most taboo acts known to humanity, an unlikely weapon from an unlikely source and, of course, shoes. Let me take you to Constantinople…. Musical credits, sources and more at: https://talesofbritainandireland.com/episode-32-the-shoemaker-of-constantinople/ #myth #mythology #folklore #legends

In Constantinople there lived a shoemaker…

A woman being fitted for shoes – A key plot point in this tale

Walter Map’s charming little tale of a Princess, ambition, obsession, one of the most taboo acts known to humanity, an unlikely weapon from an unlikely source and, of course, shoes.

Let me take you to Constantinople….

Warning: this is a very Not Safe For Work story, not suitable for children.


“No… what? Really!?! No!”

— Me, reading this story for the first time

There’s a fair amount that could be written about this story but I think more even than in the case of episodes I’m going to keep this website page brief on details and let the episode do the talking.

This medieval manuscript illustrator has captured Sir Patrick Stewart’s appearance surprisingly accurately
Story in summary (Warning – contains spoilers!)

The stories in brief, without the detail or discussion – not a transcript.

If you’ve already listened and just want a refresh, only want the bare bones of the story, or really don’t care about spoilers then please do click below to read on…

Please also note that this is considerably NSFW and not suitable for children.

The Shoemaker of Constantinople

Views of Constantinople

For some inexplicable reason there aren’t really any illustrations of this story in the fin de siècle children’s fairy tale books I take lots of the images for my episodes from. Funny that.

But Constantinople and then Istanbul has served as inspiration for some breathtakingly beautiful artwork. So here’s a small selection…. to take your mind off things.

Jan Peeters’ drawing entitled “The Gulf of Satalia”

Not a Cobbler

I spent a long time wanting to call the Shoemaker a cobbler. Just for the satisfying onomatopoeic value: the Cobbler of Constantinople just rolls of the tongue nicely. But technically, and I quote Wikipedia here:

A cordwainer is a shoemaker who makes new shoes from new leather. The cordwainer’s trade can be contrasted with the cobbler’s trade, according to a tradition in Britain that restricted cobblers to repairing shoes. This usage distinction is not universally observed, as the word cobbler is widely used for tradespersons who make or repair shoes.”

So now you know.

Anywy here’s a picture of an ancinet Greek shoemaker’s tomb. It’s not really related, but just to help you keep your mind off.. things.

Byzantine shoes. May or may not have been made by the Shoe Maker

Selected Sources

Musical credits for Episode 32: The Shoemaker of Constantinople

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