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How we got to skin
Over the centuries people gradually began to discover different ways to preserve the skin of animals. So they discovered that removing a piece of flesh was a necessary first step in the treatment, as well as rubbing salt on the skin drew moisture, and burning green leaves produced fumes with methanol which has healing properties on the skin.
Tanning techniques have been found in Assyrian texts from the fifth millennium BC and in Homer's Iliad. The ancient Egyptians were so advanced with the manufacture of leather goods that they started making gloves. In Roman times, leather was used throughout the empire. By the 12th century all the basic techniques for working with leather had been established and leather began to be used in a wider range, from dressing book covers to clothing.
The History of Leather
Leather is one of the first and most important discoveries of the human species. Our ancestors used skin to protect themselves from the elements and this can be seen from Paleolithic wall paintings in Lleida, Spain, from the frozen skeleton of a Bronze Age hunter in the Alps who was found wearing shoes made of bear and deer skin, as well as from other corresponding findings. Ever since humans started killing animals for their meat, they have been using their skins as well. The first use of animal sheepskin was to keep people warm from the cold, so they wrapped it around themselves. Clothing, protection and footwear must have been among the first ways these sheep were used. But raw hides became stiff at low temperatures and rotted at high temperatures, so something had to be done to turn these animal hides into a more durable material, which is how we made leather.
Where is leather made today?
The leather industry argues that leather is a by-product of the meat industry and that without leather production there will be serious environmental impacts.
Clearly the supply of leather depends on the meat industry. Countries that have a large meat production tend to have a large leather goods industry, which is why countries such as Brazil, Argentina and the United States of America are large leather producers. There are cases like Italy where for historical reasons it has a deep tradition in the manufacture of leather goods and to this day it is considered as one of the leading players in the leather industry. India's leather industry began with the arrival of British warriors in the 19th century and their demand for horse saddles and boots, so to this day India continues its tradition and is one of the largest exporters of leather in the world. Nevertheless, it is China's vast industry that has the upper hand as the largest producer of leather goods in the world.