History of hide materials

Humanity has used animal hides since the Paleolithic, for clothing as well as mobile shelters such as tipis and wigwams, and household items. Since ancient times, hides have also been used as a writing medium, in the form of parchment.

Fur clothing was used by other hominids, at least the Neanderthal man.

As animal husbandry was introduced during the Neolithic, human communities got a steady source of hides. The oldest known piece of leather footwear is the Areni-1 shoe that was made in Armenia around 3,500 BCE.

Rawhide is a simple hide product, that turns stiff. It was formerly used for binding pieces of wood together. Today it is mostly found in drum skins.

Parchment for use in document was introduced during the Bronze Age and later refined into vellum, before paper became commonplace.

Tanning of hides to manufacture leather was introduced during the Neolithic, and is documented from Ancient Egypt around 1,300 BCE. Various substances used were tannin obtained from trees, as well as animal brains, or faeces. The odor from tanning separated the tanneries from populated areas.

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