These shoes weren't made for walking

For centuries, Chinese officials placed restrictions on the colour and style of civilian clothes. But one thing escaped such limitations - women's shoes.

Dr David Ko Chi-sheng, a collector of ancient shoes and head of Taiwan's Foot-Binding Culture Museum, said: 'One pair of shoes does not have significant meaning, but the whole collection reflects history.'

Women's shoes changed dramatically over hundreds of years, reflecting not only fashion but also culture and relations between the sexes. Such freedom does not mean much nowadays, but the significance then cannot be underestimated, Ko said.

The 54-year-old is exhibiting a selection of 70 shoes and accessories in Hong Kong that reveal the history of Chinese women's shoes, in celebration of International Women's Day on Monday.

Among the collection on display is a tiny pair of shoes from Taiwan just 7cm long. Ko said the 100-year-old pair were possibly the smallest adult shoes in the world.

The public will also get the chance to see 900-year-old silk stockings and shoes from the Ming dynasty that are more than 500 years old.

Ko estimated that 3.5 trillion Chinese women had had their feet bound, which was considered beautiful in the past. Men found them so attractive that drinking glasses were made in the shape of tiny shoes, some of which are also on display.