Ancient Scythians Made Leather From Human Skin, Findings Reveal

Scythians, an ancient group of nomadic people from as early as the ninth century BCE, have left us with only a bit of information about how they lived day-to-day. We do know, however, that they were famous warriors for more than two thousand years.

Adding to their tough image, recent findings reveal that Scythian warriors used quivers made from the skin of their defeated enemies.

Living on the vast Pontic-Caspian steppe from about 700 to 300 BCE, the Scythians were a mysterious group known for their horse skills and military strength. While there aren’t many direct accounts from that time, the ancient Greek historian Herodotus provided us with some vivid details about the Scythians’ battlefield actions.

Scythians had quivers with pieces of leather from human skin

Herodotus reported that the nomadic warriors had some unusual habits. They were known to drink the blood of their enemies and even scrape the flesh from their heads and use it as a hand towel. Herodotus also noted that some of them would remove the skin, along with the nails, from the right hands of their fallen enemies and use them to cover their quivers.

Up until now, we had to trust what Herodotus said about the Scythians’ habits. However, a recent study has provided scientific support for these startling claims.

Herodotus was right: at least two of these 45 Scythian leather samples were made from people. https://t.co/f2uP4kfFE2 pic.twitter.com/KsM1S1ZCzi

— Crémieux (@cremieuxrecueil) December 15, 2023

Scientists used various methods to examine the proteins in forty-five leather samples from fourteen different Scythian sites in southern Ukraine. This helped them figure out which species each piece of skin came from.

Most of the samples turned out to be crafted from sheep, goat, cattle, or horse skin. This makes sense since the Scythians herded these animals, meaning their skin was easy to acquire. Additionally, these four species have tough skin, which is perfect for making leather items.

However, two of the quivers examined by the researchers were made with pieces of human skin.

Direct scientific evidence supporting Greek historian Herodotus’ claim

The researchers were quite surprised to discover two pieces of human skin. The finding backs up Herodotus’ assertions about the Scythians’ use of their fallen enemies’ skin for the purpose of making leather items, such as covers for their quivers.

This human leather was mixed in with the skin of other animals, creating a sort of patchwork quilt made from various species. The researchers explained that the more unusual human and carnivore leather was likely used in the upper sections of the quivers.

Moreover, this suggests each archer possibly crafted his own quiver using whatever materials were on hand at the time, according to recent research.