Description

Siegel’s Sokoto™ Traditional Goatskin

The Gold Standard in Archival Bookbinding Leather

Siegel’s Sokoto™ Traditional is the world’s most rigorously authenticated archival bookbinding goatskin. Produced using documented historical methods and verified modern conservation standards, it represents the highest expression of true Sokoto™ leather available today.

For generations, this leather has been trusted by elite bookbinders, conservators, libraries, and museums who cannot afford material failure, historical inaccuracy, or chemical instability.

Available in 23 professional colors, each skin is individually certified, traceable, and laboratory verified.

What Makes Sokoto™ Traditional Authentic

Genuine Sokoto™ goatskin originates exclusively from Nigerian Red Goats raised by Fulani pastoralists in northern Nigeria’s Sokoto™ region. These are the same skins historically (pre 1880) transported along Trans-Saharan trade routes to Morocco and on to Europe.  In the 20th century, after transport to Europe, retanning and coloring, they were known as Niger Morocco – valued for their durability, distinctive river-grain texture, and exceptional longevity. These were used and cherished by such famous binders as Middleton and Cockerell. No substitute goat breed, region, or industrial tannery can reproduce these characteristics.

The Traditional Two-Stage Process 

Stage 1: Traditional Pit Tanning in Sokoto™, Nigeria

• Tanned exclusively with Bagaruwa (African Acacia pods)
• Processed in ground-set pits, not drums
• Bated with pigeon dung, a historical enzymatic method that opens the fiber structure
• Fat liquored with ground nut oil
• Only native botanicals, and, of course, no petrochemicals
• No chrome, sulfur, or industrial chemicals
• Produces the naturally occurring river-grain pattern that cannot be embossed or mechanically replicated

Stage 2: Expert Retanning & Coloring

• • Conducted under Siegel’s technical supervision
  • Uses only vegetable tannins and aniline dyes
  • No chrome, azo dyes, metal-complex dyes, or pigments

• Leather where the distinctive grain is created by mechanical means is not authentic

• Ensures chemical stability while preserving historical integrity

Result: A leather that remains stable, flexible, and structurally sound for centuries, not decades.

Visual documentation of the traditional tanning process used to create Sokoto™ Red Goat leather artifacts- photo taken by our staff

Classical Full Grain – No Compromises

Sokoto™ Traditional adheres to the strictest classical definition of full grain:

• Hair removed only — no buffing, sanding, or grain correction
• Zero pigment surface (true full aniline finish)
• Preserves the critical grain–corium interface
• Exceptional receptivity to:
  • Gold tooling
  • Blind tooling
  • Traditional gold leaf/albumen gilding

This is the reason Sokoto™ Traditional resists powdering, cracking, and surface failure common in imitation “Sokoto™” leathers.

Laboratory Verified Authenticity

Periodic independent laboratory testing confirms:

• Zero detectable chromium (Cr III and Cr VI)
• Sulfur-free vegetable tannage  as Stage 1,  laboratory tested

Testing has identified chrome residues in competing products marketed as “Sokoto™”, evidence of modern shortcuts that disqualify them from true archival classification.

Certificate of Authenticity (Included With Every Skin)

Each Sokoto™ Traditional skin includes a formal Certificate of Authenticity, featuring:

• Unique traceable identification number
• Verified Sokoto™ regional origin
• Production batch documentation
• Laboratory confirmation of archival, sulfur-free status
• Affidavit of historically, museum Sokoto™ grain matches Sokoto™
• Official Siegel seal

Materials sold without this certification do not meet the Sokoto™ standard

Official Seal and Unique Traceable Number for Genuine Sokoto™ Goatskin.

Institutional Trust & Historical Record

• Recognized by the Royal Society of Arts (1905) as the premier vegetable-tanned goat leather
• Trusted by conservation professionals worldwide
• Supplied by Siegel Leather for over two decades of institutional conservation work

Technical Specifications

• Colors: 23 archival aniline colors
• Tannage: 100% vegetable (Bagaruwa & botanical extracts)
• Finish: Full aniline, zero pigment
• Grain: Natural river grain (not embossed)
• Compliance: Sulfur-free, (prior to recoloring),  chrome-free, archival-grade

Ideal For

• Archival bookbinding and conservation
• Rare book restoration
• Fine edition publishing
• Gold and blind tooling, particularly gold leaf with albumen
• Institutional and museum collections

The Siegel Guarantee

“Do not curse the deaf or put a stumbling block in front of the blind, but fear your God.” — Leviticus 19:14

This principle, taught by our grandfather, defines our work. We are transparent about what constitutes true archival leather, honest about the difference between authentic and imitation materials, and committed to providing exactly what we claim, nothing more, nothing less.

Siegel Leather is the sole authorized producer of Sokoto™ Goatskin.
Any material sold outside our certification system does not meet the Sokoto™ standard.

For the Serious Professional

If your work demands historically documented, scientifically verified, and uncompromising archival leather, Siegel’s Sokoto™ Traditional is the definitive choice.

Available in 23 certified archival colors. Each skin is individually verified and traceable.

For over 100 years, Siegel Leather has served the bookbinding and conservation community with integrity, quality, and unwavering commitment to traditional craftsmanship.

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