Valkenburg/Castleford style caliga step by step

[Martin Moser]

After closing the back seam I chose to apply a seam protection. This was not always done, but is known from a number of finds. Here is the piece of leather I prepared for that, already pierced every 6mm to take up the 3mm broad band of leather I cut from a piece of alum-tanned and therefore white leather to make for a nice color contrast. The widening at the lower end will go in between the middle and lower sole for extra stability



After piercing the caliga leather at the same distance as the protective strip I laced the white leather band through both layers. Note that you do not need 3mm wide cuts for the leather band to go through, a somewhat larger hole pierced with an ordinary (or if you have one, flat) awl works just as well.



Here is the finished back. The white leather strips end inward, where the can be tied and sewn down to keep them in place. Instead of the (in my case white) leather parchment can also be used.



After oiling, the light brown protective leather will be almost the same color as the caliga leather.

Time needed to prepare leather parts and thread the strip through: ca. 2h 30 min