Applied Sciences to Archaeological Leather: Case Study of Scythian Leather in Ukraine

The study of archaeological leather is a very understudied area despite leather being one of the oldest materials used by humans. The advancement of scientific techniques in recent times had proven that much information can be gained from the investigation of these materials. Whilst there are other articles and studies that describe specific techniques used in leather, there seems to be lack of a source that gives a general overview of how archaeological leather should be investigated, treated and used to add to information on wider aspects of societies such as trade, technology and social relations. Fourteen samples from seven different Scythian sites were investigated in this study, through different visual observations using different strengths of microscopy. The main diagnostic features that could be viewed through these methods centered around species identification through grain pattern analysis and the use of pigments and decoration. An in-depth explanation of the structure of leather and processing methods is provided, followed by an overview of the previous study of archaeological leather. Furthermore, other scientific methods that could be applied to archaeological leather are detailed with suggestions for when and why certain analytic techniques would be most appropriate depending on the state of the material and how degraded it may be.