Many of us have one or two leather accessories. Items made of leather are cherished by many people because of their beauty and high durability. There is nobody who will not like to have things made of leather. Despite the high cost of leather accessories, people are still buying them. However, there is no doubt that many people do not know what leather is, how leather is made, and how its use for the production of fashion accessories and other items started. Definitely some people may think that leather and the use of leather in fabricating things are the inventions of the modern man. No, this is far from the truth. Leather and the use of leather for the making of things have a history that dated back to the pre-historic time. Indeed, leather is one of the inventions of the pre-historic man that has not gone into extinction or has not been brushed aside by the wave of history. The fact remains that leather has contributed greatly to the development of civilisation. Let us begin our discussion on the history of leather by knowing what leather is.
What is Leather?
Leather is a material from animal skin. The animal is killed and then skinned. The skin is processed by tanning it. The end product of the tanning process is what is known as leather. If you are observant, you would have noticed that leather products in the market today are not of the same quality and durability level. This is partly because of the fact that there are different kinds of animal hides that can be used in the fabrication of leather. These animal hides differ greatly in their strength, toughness and durability and so the items made with them also differ in their strength. The most popular used leather is the leather gotten from cow hide. It is in fact the best type of leather because of its durability and other admirable qualities. Animals whose skins can be used in the fabrication of leather are goat, sheep, pig, antelope, etc. Leather can also produced with the hides of birds, yet such leathers are not very popular.
The use of Leather across Different Generations
The pre-historic man made use of leather. During those times, when the building technology has not been conceived, fashion unknown to mankind, the pre-historic man was using leather material to make provision for the basic needs of man. Leather was specifically used by the early man for shelter, clothing, decorative attire and mats. Though the type of leather the early man used was very crude and unrefined compared to what we have today. It could still be regarded as leather because it is used from animal hide.
Leather has come a very long way since early civilization. The uses for leather may have dramatically changed, the durability and beauty of real leather hasn’t changed. It continues to be one of the most luxurious materials known to man.
Reference: Leather History > The Beginning of Leather