When you talk about leather jackets, they are not just like your ordinary wardrobe item; they have a rich history and can be styled in countless ways. Over the years the leather jacket fashion has evolved immensely. From Fashion to bikers to military, they have all worn leather jackets and each has its unique style.
Early days of leather jackets
The history of wearing leather jackets can be
dated back to the period of the cave men. It is clear for the cave paintings
made in caves that even back then leather was used by the primitive people. The
leather they used was not very fashionable, but the main objective was to
protect them. The treatment back in the days was done with natural ingredients
such as barks and plants.
You can see the paintings in the Egyptian tombs
to understand that as time progressed leather was then used as clothing, burying
the dead and even for military equipment. Since that time, leather has become
an extremely important raw material.
The Roman’s used leather on a larger scale,
where they started using it to make footwear, clothes, military equipment, and
most for shields, saddles and harnesses. Archeologists have discovered large
quantities of leather goods in the roman sites. These have been used as
footwear and clothing.
Introduction of leather manufacturers
As time progressed, the Romans introduced
leather manufacturing in Britain. Most monks back in the days were experts at
making leather; most of it was used for writing purposes. The Britons further introduced the use of
leather as footwear, clothing, leather bags for carrying items and hulls of
boats.
As centuries progresses leather manufacturing
has expanded steadily and back in the medieval days almost every town had a
tannery. These still exist in the names of different streets.
Leather in the 20th Century
In the 20th century leather was used
to make style statements, especially when brown and black leather jackets were
used in movies by leading stars. The most famous leather jacket of the 50s was
the Marlon Brando leather jacket from the movie ‘The Wild Ones’. The jacket
became an instant hit and the demand of leather jackets among the American and
British youth increased heavily.
From the Greaser Jackets of the 50s that was
seen in everyone’s wardrobe to the Fonz’s iconic jacket of the 60s almost every
second person owned a stylish leather jacket. The fashion of leather jackets
further increased with the introduction of bomber leather jackets for the
military. These jackets were also used by stars in different movies such as
Jimmy Stewart in ‘Night Passage’. Brown leather jackets have been a must have
for any Hollywood adventurer.
Most of the demand for leather jackets in the
20th century has been seen because of the Hollywood influence on the
fashion industry. From the leather jacket worn by the lead character in the
movie terminator series, from the long coats worn by Neo in ‘The Matrix’ have
gone on to define the leather jacket business from time and time again.
