"He shoots, he scores!" A perfect decoration for your office, home, or game room, this sporty soccer shoe patent is printed on canvas with archival ink. 

Traceable history of the soccer shoe dates to the 1800s. Players hammered metal tacks into the soles of steel-toed work boots for traction. Eventually, football laws did away with the boot and replaced it with the slipper-shoe, called "soccus," and for once, players' feet began to look alike. Rounded studs or "cleats" could be inserted into soles for grip. Throughout the decades, improvements to soccer cleats were made and patented.

The patent act of 1790 established the rules for submitting a patent application. Each application had to be submitted with specifications, a patent drawing, and if possible a model of the invention. Eventually, models were no longer required.

The National Archives holds nearly three million patent case files from 1836-1956.