the only reason why late 19th century chinese women had to bound their feet was only because an emperor saw a gorgeous woman and how she had tiny feet and admired it so much that he practically made small feet a must for women all over china to bound their feet and do the same. i would say he had a foot fetish...
of course, through out chinese history, women didnt have to bound their feet like that of late 19th century women.
a pair of Qing dynasty platform shoes
flickr
a common style of slippers from Tang dynasty with turned up or filled in toe to make it look full
baidu.com
another pair of Qing dynasty platforms worn by royalty, this picture was featured in the book 'shoes' by linda o'keefee
gznet.com