An Armenian cave has unearthed the world’s oldest leather shoe – believed to be 1000 years earlier than the Egyptian pyramids.

Found perfectly preserved, the laced shoe, which predates Stonehenge by more than 400 years, was made from a single cow-hide leather piece and had been shaped to the contours of the wearer’s foot.

The 5500-year-old footwear is 24.5cm in length, and 7.6cm to 10cm in width. It dates back to 3500BC, to an era referred to as the Chalcolithic period. A team of international archaeologists made the discovery.

The research team leader, University of Cork College’s Ron Pinhasi, said that it was unclear if the shoe was made for a man or woman. The shoe is equivalent to the modern European size 37 but may well have fitted a man from that period. Pinhasi also said that the dry, cool and stable conditions of the cave, located in Armenia’s Vayotz Dzor province near the Turkish and Iranian borders, had undoubtedly helped the shoe’s preservation. Also found in the cave were various ceramic containers that once held fruits, plants, barley and wheat.

However, the research team said the shoe could thank a more unusual preservation device for its longevity – sheep dung. The cave floor was covered in the droppings, which had created a thick layer of seal that had enabled the objects to last through the millennia. High street retailers are not expected to adopt the technique, although it would be no surprise to see a new version of the shoe itself – which looks remarkably comfortable even today.