RomanArmyTalk

Salve

I'm starting to work on my cingulum and have ordered the plates which I want to tin/silver and put niello on myself, so while I wait for them I wanted to start sewing the belt. I am portraying late 1st century, not a centurion but a soldier from a wealthy family.

What I heard was that they used red leather, but were any other leather colours used?
How did you sew the belt?
Did you apply little decorations like a stiched in Name or something?
Also, what thickness of leather did you use?

I would really appreciate your ideas and pictures!

Florian

(05-16-2021, 04:29 PM)Zarathustra Wrote: [ -> ]Salve

I'm starting to work on my cingulum and have ordered the plates which I want to tin/silver and put niello on myself, so while I wait for them I wanted to start sewing the belt. I am portraying late 1st century, not a centurion but a soldier from a wealthy family.

What I heard was that they used red leather, but were any other leather colours used?
How did you sew the belt?
Did you apply little decorations like a stiched in Name or something?
Also, what thickness of leather did you use?

I would really appreciate your ideas and pictures!

Florian

Apart from natural colours of leather from the tanning or curing process, which can range from white to yellow to brown and reddish brown, depending on what is used in the process.
There are only 4 dye colours that are known to me from leather from antiquity, Black, Green, Red and Purple.
The Red is expensive, Purple very expensive, Black cheap and Green appears in Ancient Egypt but no Roman* leather that I'm aware off...
Eg: at Roman Premnis Egypt 25bc+ black dyed and natural white shoes, Southfleet london purple shoes 150-200ad, but mostly from Coptic Egypt late 3rd ad+ many example of red and black Leather with occasional blue?(could be green* from copper verdigris)