# Virgin leather? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 15, 2000, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/virgin-leather/29397 "2000-08-15T04:17:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2014, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/virgin-leather/29397/21 "2014-04-24T16:06:34Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Another leatherworker here - I’ve only heard the term recently. I suspect a [del]new[/del] virgin marketing ploy. I googled “virgin leather” and this thread was the first hit. Then there is a company called Virgin Leather, which is just the name of the company, not the name of the leather. Then there is a Yahoo question, which just links back to this thread. Then there are 32M hits of junk. My conclusion is that there is no such thing. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2014, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/virgin-leather/29397/22 "2014-04-24T16:16:21Z")
> [@johnpost](#): > > it is a true statement. It’s not a very helpful statement. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2014, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/virgin-leather/29397/23 "2014-04-24T16:23:53Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > It’s not a very helpful statement. What if he added the word “woosh”? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![doorhinge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a5b964/32.png) [@doorhinge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doorhinge)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2014, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/virgin-leather/29397/24 "2014-04-24T16:32:56Z")
I’m beginning to get the impression that the term “virgin leather” is a sales or marketing term and has nothing to do with animal hides or hide processing. _Billy - What are we talking about? Bobby - Cow hide. Billy - What? Bobby - Hide. Hide. The cows outside. Billy - Why? I’m not afraid of a cow_. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2014, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/virgin-leather/29397/25 "2014-04-24T19:22:26Z")
> [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](#): > > I have a very nice fake leather jacket. It’s really synthetic, but it’s vergin’ on leather. So, the nauga wasn’t killed for it’s hide? ---
**Author:** ![GrizzRich](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7ba0ec/32.png) [@GrizzRich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrizzRich)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2014, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/virgin-leather/29397/26 "2014-04-24T19:43:24Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > So, the nauga wasn’t killed for it’s hide? have you tried the _meat_? BLEAH! ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2014, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/virgin-leather/29397/27 "2014-04-24T22:14:04Z")
I didn’t see the quote first and thought this referred to virgin meat. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2014, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/virgin-leather/29397/28 "2014-04-25T14:36:55Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Did either of you know of any other word for leather that came from an animal which wasn’t killed specifically for its hide? The word for leather from an animal that wasn’t killed for its hide is “leather” I know of no operation that kills any of the usual animals (cow, sheep, pig, etc) just for their hides. IME, skins are almost always a by-product of the meat industry. Sure, _some_ exotics are killed just for their hides, I’m sure. But we aren’t really discussing kangaroos, lizards and snakes, here. ---
**Author:** ![Francis\_Vaughan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/francis_vaughan/32/3093_2.png) [@Francis\_Vaughan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Francis_Vaughan)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2014, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/virgin-leather/29397/29 "2014-04-25T15:36:30Z")
I wonder if the term is an attempt to differentiate the leather from [bonded leather](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bonded_leather). Given bonded leather is made in much the same was as particle-board, made from shredded leather held together with a polymer, the distinction and use of the word “virgin” to differentiate ordinary leather is not too far removed from the use with respect to virgin wool. Given the rise of the use of bonded leather in furniture I can imagine that some vendors might like to create a term to differentiate their product. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2014, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/virgin-leather/29397/30 "2014-04-25T19:54:35Z")
None e’er touched me _there_, said she Not hide nor hair nor feather And when I die a virgin I’ll be for it has turned to leather. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/virgin-leather/29397.md?page=1)