Finback Leather

The Finback can block arrows from the gods, and now let this coat grant you the same protection.

-Cradcresse saying

The Finback is a mighty sea creature that perpetually swims around the world staying in the daylight filter feeding from Didomes oceans. The hide of the Finback when tanned makes a rough sturdy leather that is exceptionally strong and abrasion resistant.

Properties

Material Characteristics

A tanned hide is filled with inch wide and 1/4 inch deep wrinkles across the surface. If stretched with a large amount of force leather will become smooth but as soon as the tension is removed it regains it wrinkles appearance. When the leather is stretched it is apparent that troughs of the wrinkles are a slightly darker shade then the ridges of the wrinkles. This discoloration effects gives the appearance that the wrinkles are deeper then they actually are. The wrinkle stripe pattern has become a popular pattern to replicate in dyed fabrics and on wallpaper in the houses of nobles living on the Cradcresse Islands

Physical & Chemical Properties

The leather is stronger than leather from domesticated animals. It has a natural slate grey appearance when tanned. The tanning process also causes the leather to wrinkle. This wrinkling gives the leather some natural stretch and pliability. The leather also has a natural grain to it. It is much easier to cut and tear in the direction of the wrinkles and much harder to tear and cut perpendicular to the wrinkles. This has caused some military coats to be made with two layers of leather stitched together with their grains perpendicular to each other.

Geology & Geography

While the finback's circle the world everyday. They swim through the narrow straights of the Cradcresse and Eral Islands. Thus hunting the finbacks developed on these islands. The people of Hu-Sol-Cid consider the finbacks sacred guardians of the East and do not cross over the serpent wall, a narrow straight where the vast majority of the entire population of finbacks pass every day.

Origin & Source

It is not known how it was discovered that the hide of the finbacks was discovered to make great leather. Their is a story of finback tailor who found a dead finback revealed by the receding tide and he decided to try to tan its hide. Scholars are unsure if this is a true event or a tail spun by the tanners of Cradcresse.

Color

Slate grey with a subtle grey striped pattern