Rawhide combo sheaths

[Dan D'Silva]

So lately I was reading about early American knife sheaths, which apparently often had a rawhide core covered in thin buckskin. Does anyone think this is plausible for knives and cheaper daggers of the Old World (Achaemenids, Skythians, etc.), as an easier alternative to the attested metal-covered wood?

I'm aware that Esther Jacobson has said the early Altai nomads used leather and wood.

[Robert]

I was wondering what you mean with "metal covered wood"? Many period scabbards were leather over wood with metal fittings. But rawhide may be a good substitute for wood for making a core. Never tried. I suppose you would need to dry it over a wooden template to retain the shape.

[Dan D'Silva]

What I mean metal-covered wood are the akinakes scabbards, like these:

Oxus gold scabbard
Wood scabbard from Egypt

There are some other metal ones from Skythian sites. The wooden one is the only preserved organic core I know of, but it seems to me like the embossed sheet metal covers were most likely fitted to wood ones as well.

When veg-tanned leather was readily available, I'd think it'd be the natural choice for a sheath for a belt knife or cheaper dagger. In the meantime, rawhide seems like a sensible option -- but that alone doesn't make it likely, or justify a reenactor using it.

[Robert]

I would think/imagine the cheapy ones would be made of wood, looking at the shape. Much easier, no need for molding it and mure durable the rawhide.

[Dan D'Silva]

I'll admit, I haven't worked with rawhide, and I'm aware it's a different beast entirely, but between leather and wood, I've always found leather far easier. Durability of wood depends on a lot of factors, too... the tougher and thicker, the less easily carved.

The molding called for in the tutorials I've read consists simply of inserting the blade in the soaked sheath and letting it dry. The worst I can think of regarding that is it might've caused a little rust or tarnish, back before they had tape to protect the steel.

That having been said, I'll also allow that I've no evidence yet for this sort of thing in my time period. That's my real question -- whether there is, or, if not, whether it should still be considered an option for the authenticity-minded.