Our shoes tell tales. In their nicks and scuffs, their brilliance or blandness, they bear the imprint of where we've been and who we are. For this exclusive gallery, LIFE.com asked renowned photographer Craig Cutler to capture the sandals, sneakers, and stilettos of some of the most famous people to have walked the earth in the past 100 years.
Princess Diana: Pumps, 1986
Princess Diana was photographed wearing this custom-made pair at the Epsom Derby Races in June 1986, along with a black-and-white polka-dot dress by Victor Edelstein and matching hat.
Craig Cutler for LIFE.
Elvis Presley: Blue Patent Loafers, 1972 -1977
Although the King of Rock and Roll sang about blue suede shoes, he reportedly never owned a pair. The ones he famously wore on the Steve Allen Show (to sing to a hound dog in a tuxedo) were lent to him by producers for his appearance. Presley wore these patent loafers during the last five years of his life.
Craig Cutler for LIFE.
Marilyn Monroe: Red Stiletto Pumps, 1957-1959
Many of Marilyn Monroe's most famous photographs featured her wearing red shoes. She bought this pair, one of a number she owned designed by influential New York shoemaker Herbert Levine, from the Vogue store in Montreal in 1957. They're size 7AA.
Craig Cutler for LIFE
Lawrence of Arabia: Desert Sandals, Circa 1917
Lt. Col. Thomas Edward Lawrence is best known as Lawrence of Arabia, the British officer who helped lead the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire during World War I. He often wore native Arab garb during this period.
Craig Cutler for LIFE.
Pope Clement XIII, Clement XIV, or Pius VI: Ritual Slippers, Circa 1760-1790
These mules were worn as part of the ritual attire for Pope Clement XIII, Pope Clement XIV, or Pope Pius VI in the latter half of the 18th century. Clement XIII ordered that fig leaves cover the private parts of all the nude statues in the Vatican. Clement IV knighted a 14-year-old Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Pius VI helped create the Vatican museums, was imprisoned by Napoleon Bonaparte, and reigned longer than any other pontiff up to then.
Craig Cutler for LIFE.
John Lennon: Chelsea Boots, 1962 - 1965
The pre-Beatlemania musician probably had little idea that he was about to repopularize the Victoria-era riding boot when, in the early '60s, he and Paul McCartney came across a pair in the London shoestore Anello & Davide and decided they'd go well with their new mop-topped, suited look. (Other accounts say it was manager Brian Epstein who found the boots.)
Craig Cutler for LIFE.
Dalai Lama: Rubber Thongs, 2010
As befits the head of an order of monks dedicated to the concept of shedding worldy concerns, Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th and current Dalai Lama, wears the simplest of sandals—and wears them out.
Craig Cutler for LIFE.
Elizabeth Taylor: Stiletto Sandals, 1980 - 1984
The late Golden Age Hollywood beauty was best known for her jewelry and husbands, but as these silver stiletto evening sandals attest, she was still a fashion plate even as her acting career was winding down in the early '80s.
