Leather is a durable and flexible material that is created by preserving and treating animal rawhide and skins. Leather hides can be used in the manufacturing of footwear, automobile and furniture upholstery, bags, bookbinding, architectural elements, cloths, and fashion accessories. The earliest examples of animal hides being preserved and dressed dates back to 2200 BC. The manufacturing of leather comprises a preparatory stage of soaking, hair removal, liming, deliming, bating, bleaching, and pickling followed by the tanning and then crusting process. It often times ends with the finishing of leathers, which includes treatments to the surface that include oiling, buffing, coating, and embossing.
