Parts of a Pointe Shoe – Box, Platform, Shank, Vamp

All 10 parts on the diagram

Show the list

Outside 6

Ribbons They hold the shoe on the foot. Fabric, sewn on at the sides.
Platform The flat front end of the box. The dancer balances on it.
Vamp The upper piece of the shoe. It runs from the platform back to the drawstring.
Throat The edge of the vamp at the front of the opening. It is V-shaped or round.
Drawstring A cord that runs through the binding and ties at the throat.
Binding The fabric channel round the opening. The drawstring runs through it.

Cut open 4

Box A stiff cup in the front of the shoe. It encases and supports the toes.
Wings The wings are the sides of the box. They reach back a little past the throat.
Shank A stiff insole that stiffens the sole. That supports the arch of the foot.
Sole The bottom of the shoe, usually leather. It covers only part of the bottom.

How this list was compiled: Every name checked on 2026-09-30, a name kept only where two independent sources use it: Wikipedia, text only: Pointe shoe, section Construction (box, shank, vamp measured from the platform to the drawstring, throat as the edge of the vamp, drawstring within the binding, platform, wings as the sides of the box, leather sole that covers only part of the bottom, ribbons); a pointe shoe maker's glossary, Anatomy of a Pointe Shoe, read as the archived copy at https://web.archive.org/web/20081121055632/http://www.gaynorminden.com/anatomy.php (binding, box or block, outer sole, platform, shank as the stiff insole, throat, vamp, winged box); the Victoria and Albert Museum's catalog records for pointe shoes, https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1652322/ and https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1652323/ (ribbons, binding, drawstring, vamp); and US Customs and Border Protection ruling NY F83304, https://rulings.cbp.gov (hardened box toe, stiff insole, leather outer sole). Licence: own work

The drawing: Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry; no maker's stamp, nothing traced. Licence: own work

How it works

This pointe shoe diagram has two drawings. The first shows the shoe from the side. The second shows it cut open, because its two stiff parts, the box and the shank, are hidden under the fabric.

Read the full guide

Outside first, then inside

Numbers 1 to 6 are on the outside: the ribbons, the platform, the vamp, the throat, the drawstring and the binding. Open the second drawing for 7 to 10. It shows the box round the toes, one of the wings at its side, the shank along the inside of the bottom, and the sole underneath.

The box is also called the block. Either answer is accepted.
The platform is the flat front end of the box, so it shows in both drawings.

Questions and answers

What are the parts of a pointe shoe called?

Outside: the vamp over the toes, the platform at the tip, the throat, the binding with its drawstring, and the ribbons. Inside: the box round the toes, its wings, and the shank. A thin sole covers part of the bottom.

What is the box of a pointe shoe?

A stiff cup inside the front of the shoe that encases and supports the toes. Its front end is flattened to make the platform. In many shoes it is made of layers of paper, paste and fabric glued hard.

What is the shank of a pointe shoe?

A stiff insole that runs along the bottom of the shoe, inside it. It stiffens the sole to support the arch of the foot. Shanks are made of leather, plastic, cardstock or glue-hardened burlap.

What is the flat tip of a pointe shoe called?

The platform. It is the flattened front end of the box, and it is the part the dancer balances on.