Shakespeare’s leather links inspire Northampton exhibition
12/07/2019
“Leather is everywhere,” the National Leather Collection said on announcing the exhibition, not least hidden in the words our beloved bard, William Shakespeare.”
It went on to explain that Shakespeare was “well-versed in the world of leather” because his father tanned leather and made gloves in the house in Stratford-upon-Avon in which he spent his childhood. When he moved London in the 1590s, Shakespeare was a tenant of the Worshipful Company of Leathersellers.
Shakespeare references leather and leather-work in many of his plays and poems and, through a selection of objects from the National Leather Collection, the exhibition aims to bring the writer’s words to life and explore the meaning behind them.
This exhibition is a collaborative project between the National Leather Collection and Northampton University of the Third Age, whose leathercraft and Shakespeare groups have helped to curate and research the items in the exhibition.
The exhibition offers a glimpse into the 10,000 items held in the collection, which tell the story of leather from prehistory to present day.
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