EFFECT OF NEEM PLANT BARK EXTRACT (AZADIRACHTA INDICA) ON LEATHER TANNING

EFFECT OF NEEM PLANT BARK EXTRACT (AZADIRACHTA INDICA) ON LEATHER TANNING

ABSTRACT

Leather is a durable and flexible material made by tanning raw animal hides and skins, mainly cattle hide. It has been widely utilised since ancient times and continues to do so today (Convington 2009). In prehistoric periods, man was primarily preoccupied with eating and acquiring food; clothes did not exist. The desire for the apparel is focused on hunting. The prehistoric man realised that the animals he hunted could be used for clothing as well as sustenance. As a result, they began to rely on animal skins for clothing. People originally wore animal skins during the Palaeolithic period. Later, man discovered that the skins quickly putrefied and were unusable. They needed a method to preserve the hides (Marion and Roy, 2006). People discovered that the quality of leather could be improved, therefore they began preserving hides/skins by rubbing them with fats and animal brains. These prehistoric people also conserved the skin with the smoke of a wood fire, although this process had a limited preservation and softening effect. Later, tannin from the bark of some trees was utilised to convert raw skins into soft material, a process known as “vegetable tanning” (Convington 2009).