Rivets how far back did they use them in leatherwork

[loflyr55]

I know there was a lot of use for copper and brass rivets in civil war accoutrements but how much further did their use go? I see mountain man depictions with brass studs on belt knife sheaths but wore rivets used as far back as the 1840 s and how common were they?

 

[Rod Man]

I believe they were beginning to be more common late 1840's. Knife handles, horse tack etc. I am sure someone more knowledgeable than I, will chime in soon enough.

RM

 

[The Appalachian]

"Rivet holes have been found in Egyptian spearheads dating back to the Naqada culture of between 4400 and 3000 B.C . Archeologists have also uncovered many Bronze Age swords and daggers with rivet holes where the handles would have been. The rivets themselves were essentially short rods of metal, which metalworkers hammered into a pre-drilled hole on one side and deformed on the other to hold them in place."

Another source stated ancient Egypt 5000 BC holding handles on clay pots.

The technology is ancient so it's not hard to imagine that humans long ago would have realized that some form of rivet would be far more durable in leather than thread or lacing. I think the question would be one of tools and resources and what they considered good enough for the task at hand, at the time period. For example, copper rivets were probably used in leather harnesses long LONG before anyone felt extravagant enough to rivet a knife sheath together.

 

[springfield art]

I know there was a lot of use for copper and brass rivets in civil war accoutrements but how much further did their use go? I see mountain man depictions with brass studs on belt knife sheaths but wore rivets used as far back as the 1840 s and how common were they?

See: Ancient Rome, armor and accoutrements.

 

[Red Owl]

Rivets go way back and the images of the mountain man sheaths. In the 1880 NDN tribes made elaborate sheaths with multiple rows of brass tacks so everyone jumps at the conclusion the single row of tacks on a mountain man sheath are also brass tacks. In many instances both a belt and sheath were acquired in St. Louis or Independence and the sellers were usually saddle/harness makers SO....the "brass tacks" in the Miller paintings, etc. might very well have been harness rivets. Cheapest, most accessible thing for a harness maker to use.

 

[user 48679]

A rivet with a large/tall head comes in handy for keeping the sheathed knife from slipping through one's belt to the ground.