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Xiaodan's Foot: Difference between revisions
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The foot measures 24 centimeters in length, ten centimeters across and sixteen centimeters high. It is made of exquisitively worked silver, all of the surface excepting the toes is covered in flowers worked in gold, the foot sole and bands are also pure gold. It is encrusted with twenty six large gems and forty two small ones. The gems are saphires, emeralds, rubies, garnets and amethysts. On the front it has a flower made of eleven small mother pearls. On the bridge of the foot there is a viewing panel, the silversmiths were under the impression the Emperor's foot was merely withered; the contraption would function as a boot and once the Emperor's foot it was inserted in it, the foot's condition could be monitored with the viewing panel. The entire contraption would have been secured with leather straps. | The foot measures 24 centimeters in length, ten centimeters across and sixteen centimeters high. It is made of exquisitively worked silver, all of the surface excepting the toes is covered in flowers worked in gold, the foot sole and bands are also pure gold. It is encrusted with twenty six large gems and forty two small ones. The gems are saphires, emeralds, rubies, garnets and amethysts. On the front it has a flower made of eleven small mother pearls. On the bridge of the foot there is a viewing panel, the silversmiths were under the impression the Emperor's foot was merely withered; the contraption would function as a boot and once the Emperor's foot it was inserted in it, the foot's condition could be monitored with the viewing panel. The entire contraption would have been secured with leather straps. | ||
==History== | ==History== | ||
Trade contacts between the [[Caphiria|Imperium]] and the [[Daxia|Qian dynasty]] began in the 17th century. The volume of the trade quickly opened the way for significant political contacts between the sides. Having exchanged letters of praise, Emperor Xiaodan sent a delegation to [[Venceia]] to deliver a 3-meter tall gold plated statue of a peacock to Imperator [[Panocoscăr II]], to celebrate his twenty fifth years of rule. In return when [[Panocoscăr II]] heard that Xiaodan had lost his right foot to the gout, he commissioned his most skilled silversmith to craft a prosthetic fit for a ruler. Much work went into the foot including testing its fit on an overly large man who lost a foot to diabetes; crafting the prosthetic took five months. The foot was transported to [[Daguo]] on a chest of carved mahogany by an imperial diplomatic mission and presented before the imperial court in late 1693. The emperor used the prosthetic until his death in 1725. The foot today is exhibited in the national museum of Imperial History. | Trade contacts between the [[Caphiria|Imperium]] and the [[Daxia|Qian dynasty]] began in the 17th century. The volume of the trade quickly opened the way for significant political contacts between the sides. Having exchanged letters of praise, Emperor Xiaodan sent a delegation to [[Venceia]] to deliver a 3-meter tall gold plated statue of a peacock to Imperator [[Panocoscăr II]], to celebrate his twenty fifth years of rule. In return when [[Panocoscăr II]] heard that Xiaodan had lost his right foot to the gout, he commissioned his most skilled silversmith to craft a prosthetic fit for a ruler. Much work went into the foot including testing its fit on an overly large man who lost a foot to diabetes; crafting the prosthetic took five months. The foot was transported to [[Daguo]] on a chest of carved mahogany by an imperial diplomatic mission and presented before the imperial court in late 1693. The emperor used the prosthetic until his death in 1725. The foot today is permanently exhibited in the national museum of Imperial History. | ||
<gallery mode="packed" heights="160px"> | <gallery mode="packed" heights="160px"> | ||
File:Metal Foot 2.png|Xiaodan's foot from an angle | File:Metal Foot 2.png|Xiaodan's foot from an angle | ||