Traditional leather art

This (art-industry) is one of the first techniques that human beings have mastered. And they have tried to make clothes and shoes for theme-self or to provide things like saddle by using leather. They have also used it for better storage of objects or even conveyed messages to others by painting and writing on it.
This art-industry in Iran also has a millennial history. From the orders of Darius, the Achaemenid king, on the leather of the deer in 2500 years ago, and the two-thousand-year-old leather shoes and ropes, worn by the salt men in Zanjan, to exquisite books adorned with beautiful leather covers in the Safavid era, they all narrate about this ancient art in Iran. (pic 1)

This art, which is prevalent in Iran today, mostly in the cities of Hamedan, Kermanshah, Yasuj, and Tabriz, is entirely hand-made and has a variety of subcategories:
Traditional sewing of Leather:
This method is about all techniques of handmade leather products including leather preparing, stitching, and sealing.
(pic 2-pic 3)

These handmade products have a wide range, from bags, shoes, and belts to saddles. (pic 4)

Artistic design with leather: There are various ways to create artwork with leather. These artistic methods are including making exquisite books covers, or to make jewelry box cover, or to cover any other valuable objects. (pic 5)

In these art design methods with leather, sometimes the artist burns some parts of the leather surface to change color, and this creates beautiful patterns on the leather surface. (pic 6- pic 7- pic 8)

Sometimes, while burning parts of the leather surface, it is coated with a thin layer of gold or silver to create a more beautiful appearance.
Also, artists sometimes use the mosaic technique to create beautiful leather works. In this case, parts of the leather are cut according to the design. Then pieces of wood, textile, metal or leather are placed the same but with a different color on the work surface in a way that there is no gap between them and fully sealed. (pic 9- pic 10)

The artists can also paint on the leather using colors that are highly durable and compatible with leather. Exquisite masterpieces by using this technique can be found in the works of Iranian artists. (pic 11)

Most of the time, the artists use above mentioned techniques simultaneously and make a very beautiful combination of these methods to create artistic masterpieces. (pic 12)